The Meaning of Dreams
by Hayley128
Summary: Set after season three.  Faith didn't turn evil.  After graduation, Buffy begins to dream of Faith and tries to figure out why as she works with her fellow slayer to stop new villains striving to be the new big bad.
1. Chapter 1

Title: The Meaning of Dreams

Rating: R

Spoilers: After season three

Disclaimer: I do not own these characters and I make no money off them.

Summary: Faith did kill the deputy mayor but didn't turn evil and work for the Mayor. After graduation Buffy begins to dream of Faith and tries to figure out why as she works with her fellow slayer to stop new villains striving to be the new big bad.

* * *

Prologue

Buffy began to wake up when she realized someone was starting to walk into her room. Someone who was trying their hardest not to be noticed as they were being as quiet she'd ever heard. Normally, she would have woken up immediately to quickly find out who was trying to sneak up on her but she was too tired. Besides, she was sleeping in her own room and she was rarely attacked there.

Her mystery guest was pretty stealthy, so much so that she knew that if it wasn't for her slayer senses she wouldn't have ever heard them. Still, she couldn't feel her special slayer spidey sense go off so she figured everything was fine.

She was under the covers, on her side and on one side of her bed, and leaving plenty of room so it didn't surprise her all that much when she felt the person join her. Buffy even let a small smile slip as she felt an arm around her waist and lips press against her neck.

"Morning, baby."

Buffy opened her eyes and turned her head to see Faith cozying up to her in the bed. "Isn't it kinda early for you?"

Both of them looked at the alarm clock by her bed to see it was only 8:30 am. Buffy turned back to Faith to see she was smiling at her as she leaned down to give her a light kiss.

"Yeah, but I'm kinda excited. Big day today."

Nodding in agreement, Buffy shifted so she was fully facing Faith before leaning in and kissing her again. Faith returned it happily and tightened her arm around Buffy's waist, pulling her closer. The kisses were light and sweet, neither feeling the need to rush today. They broke apart after a few minutes, both grinning like crazy.

"Was my mom awake when you came in?"

Faith smirked as she placed her hand on Buffy's head, smoothing out her hair. "You're still nervous about that, huh?"

"Of course, I am."

"We've never been caught before," Faith pointed out quietly. "And I know better than to try my moves on you here. I know it'll never happen."

Buffy smirked but nodded in agreement. "Damn right, it won't."

"It's not like it matters, B," Faith said. "You're moving out today."

"That doesn't change the fact we're not fooling around in my room with my mom so close." Buffy looked down for a second, trying not to get distracted by Faith's fingers slowly moving over her skin. "You know, my mom and I have never really had that talk."

Faith laughed as she gave the other girl a quick kiss. "B, your mom's not dumb. She's pretty smart actually. You think she doesn't know what's been going on?"

"Well . . ." Buffy knew her mother had to know what was going on between her and Faith. She'd just always avoided those conversations with her, not because she didn't think her mother wouldn't approve but because she was afraid the conversation would be too uncomfortable for the both of them. She figured her mom knew something since Faith was always at the house and she was always out with her. Any time Faith was brought up in more than a friendly way though, Buffy changed the subject.

"Come on, Buffy," Faith said as she laughed quietly, "you're moving out today. You're not bringing your bed and moving into a one bedroom apartment with me. How does she not know?"

"Okay, I'll give you that."

Faith grinned and pulled Buffy to her, kissing her more passionately this time. Buffy wanted to tell her to stop, knowing she needed to get up and start the day but she loved kissing Faith too much. The other girl was just so good at it.

Kissing led to hands moving as Faith pulled Buffy more on top of her. She knew she should tell her she needed to get ready and start packing but she was too caught up in the moment. Faith knew her body so well, enough that she knew just how to touch her to keep her from stopping what they were doing.

Even though Faith knew how to keep Buffy in the mood, she pushed a step too far when she tried to pull up Buffy's shirt. All the morning smoochies stopped right then as Buffy easily pulled her hand away and rolled off her as well.

"You know better than to try to get some action in here, Faith Lehane. This is a no sexy zone."

"I don't know about that," Faith said casually. "You're looking pretty sexy right now."

Buffy laughed at the attempted seductive look on Faith's face and playfully swatted her arm. "Of all the times you've tried to get a little action on my room, have I ever given in?"

"No," Faith relented, "but I'll never stop trying."

"Never gonna happen."

Faith narrowed her eyes slightly before grinning. "Whatever. I don't think it'll be an issue after today." She pulled Buffy closer to her. "Tonight you're gonna be all mine and we won't have to worry about when you have to leave 'cause you'll be living with me."

Buffy smiled. "We'll wake up next to each other every morning."

"Hopefully not just next to each other." Faith grinned. "I gotta say I do kinda like waking up with you on top of me."

"I guess that could happen from time to time." Buffy smiled back as she placed a hand over Faith's. "I can't believe we're moving in together today."

"Yeah, baby. Tonight, I'm gonna fuck you so . . ."

Buffy jolted up in bed, sweating, panicked and slightly aroused. She looked over at her clock shakily, seeing it was only three in the morning. She took a couple breaths and lay back down on her bed.

It was the third night in a row she'd dreamt of Faith and there were about a dozen dreams total. Buffy didn't know what to do and knew it would be a long time before she got back to sleep. The dream freaked her out too much.

This particular dream had shaken her more than the others. All of them were simple sex dreams, ones that she could write off as products of her overactive imagine. Sure, they also freaked her out but she could repress them. They all seemed to feel like one night stands, a combination of curiously, experimentation and sexual frustration.

Tonight was different. She was in a relationship with her fellow slayer. They were happy. Hell, they were moving in together. Buffy couldn't repress that. It was so unexpected that she didn't know how.

Seeing Faith later in the day was going to be very awkward now.

TBC…


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter One

* * *

It took a couple hours but Buffy not only managed to get back to sleep but have a dreamless one as well. She was incredibly grateful for that, too, since she didn't want to face the day not only tired but with sexy Faith-type thoughts in her head as well. As soon as she woke up though thoughts of her dream from the night before entered her head and while she tried her best to push them away, it stayed in the back of her mind.

Because she'd taken some time in getting back to sleep, Buffy slept well into the morning and that didn't bother her in the least. She was three weeks into her summer vacation, three weeks after she and the rest of the senior class not only graduated from high school but also defeated the Mayor and blew up the school. She figured she deserved whatever downtime she could get.

Even though she wanted the downtime today, she had to go meet Willow and then Giles so she knew she needed to get up and get moving. Her mother had long since gone to work for the day so it didn't surprise her to see a note for her on the fridge letting her know she might have to work late tonight.

Buffy sighed when she read the note, hoping she'd get to sit down with her about some of her college worries. It was still a couple months away but things like dorm rooms, roommates, classes and other school-type problems were already on her mind and she was hoping her mom could help her with her nerves. That would have to wait now until they both had free time.

After showering and changing, she nearly ran down the stairs in an effort to eat something only to groan as the doorbell stopped her halfway to the kitchen. She turned and prayed to whoever would listen that when she opened the door Faith wouldn't be on the other side. She hadn't had enough time to get over any of her dream yet.

Thankfully, it was only Willow standing there as she opened the door. "Oh, thank God," Buffy mumbled as she smiled at her best friend.

"Uh, okay," Willow said with a confused smile. "I don't think I've seen anyone be this relieved to see me before." She paused. "Why are you relieved I came to your house to meet you and not at Giles' like we planned?"

Buffy kept her smile as she let her inside. "Not relieved that you came here to meet me really, only that it was you on the other side of the door."

"Why would you . . ." Willow started then drifted off for a minute before starting to laugh. "You had another dream, didn't you?"

Buffy groaned and turned away from her friend, walking to the kitchen like she had originally intended. "Don't make me regret telling you, Will."

Willow tried to stop laughing but only managed to half-succeed as she followed Buffy. "Sorry, but your reactions the morning after are kinda funny, especially around Faith. You're always so nervous. Sometimes it's like you're doing an impression of me."

Buffy laughed quietly at the comment. "I don't know why she makes you nervous sometimes."

"She's so intense and then she has this stare," Willow said with a shrug. "She just does and I guess I'm not alone."

"Do you think she notices?"

"Sorry to say but yeah," Willow answered with an apologetic look on her face. "I think everyone notices."

"And here I thought I was being all stealthy with my nervousness." Buffy managed a smile as she grabbed some orange juice and a low fat yogurt from the fridge.

"Buffy, a couple days ago it took you about five minutes to get a sentence out when Faith asked you a question." Willow leaned against the counter as she watched Buffy eat. "You were starting to babble toward the end."

"I did not," Buffy stated, trying to show confidence in her answer. By the look on Willow's face, she wasn't all that successful. "It was not five minutes."

"Felt like longer," Willow said, smirking slightly. "Do I even wanna know what it was about this time? 'Cause, ya know, last time I think I turned a new shade of red."

Buffy gulped down some yogurt and took a breath. "It wasn't a sex dream. It was . . . something else."

"What do you mean?"

"We were . . ." Buffy paused, struggling to get the words out. She still couldn't get over how real it felt. "We were in a relationship. She was my girlfriend and we were moving in together."

"Oh."

Buffy waited a minute but Willow didn't say anything else. "That's all you've got for me? You're supposed to be the supportive friend here, Will. Tell me that it's all in my mind and so on and so on."

"I don't know, Buffy," Willow sighed out. "Before they were all pretty simple but your dreams have a plot now. I think I might be out of my league in telling you they're all in your head."

"Great." Buffy finished her juice and sighed. "Maybe it's a spell. Some demon or vamp is trying to drive me crazy so they can take over."

Willow let a smirk show and Buffy knew what was coming. "Then they'd have to do it to Faith, too. And that means you should talk to Faith . . ."

"The last person I want to know about this is Faith." Buffy knew Willow wanted to argue the point so she quickly continued. "She'd never let me live it down. The teasing and taunting would go one until one of us died. And no, they're not slayer dreams," she added quickly, knowing that would be suggested soon. Willow had already brought it up more than once in the past.

"You're not gonna know that unless you talk to her."

Buffy sighed again, not wanting to talk about her unsettling dream anymore. "We should get going. Who knows what Giles or Faith discovered this time."

* * *

The walk to Giles' place was uneventful and both girls were fairly quiet, which didn't happen often with the two of them.

Buffy was lost in her own world. She couldn't stop thinking about her dream and what it might mean. So badly did she wish there was a sinister motive behind it but she knew that wasn't very likely given that no one knew how crazy it would make her. Anyone trying to take over Sunnydale would most definitely use other means to take her and Faith out of the picture.

The dreams she'd been having lately were beginning to cause a rift between her and Faith and that's what Buffy hated most of all. They'd worked so hard to get back to their shaky friendship and she wanted to improve on that, not see it collapse on itself like it almost did a few short months ago. When Faith accidentally killed Allan Finch Buffy knew she'd come very close to losing her to the wrong side. If she hadn't gone to her motel room the next day and demanded she be honest with her . . .

_Buffy walked into Faith's room after knocking a couple times and getting no response. She knew the other slayer was in the room, she could feel it, and it made her wonder if Faith was avoiding her. After what happened the night before, Buffy did not want to be avoided._

"_Faith?"_

_Looking further into the room, Buffy could see Faith through the open bathroom door. She was concentrating on what she was doing at the sink and as Buffy walked slower, she saw she was cleaning the shirt she'd worn the previous night. When she'd killed Finch._

_Faith groaned in frustration and let the shirt drop into the sink. "Yeah?"_

"_We lost track of each other last night," Buffy said quietly. "Wondering where you went and . . . how we're gonna deal with this."_

"_What do mean how we're gonna deal with this?" Faith looked almost disgusted at the comment and crossed her arms over her chest in what seemed like defiance._

"_Faith, you . . . killed someone." The words struggled to get out and Buffy took a breath, trying to think of the best way to say what she wanted. She soon realized there wasn't one. "We need to figure out what we're gonna do. Someone will find the body and then there'll be questions."_

_Faith shook her head with a slight smirk on her face. "I took care of the body so there won't be any questions."_

_Buffy quickly looked her over and though she was trying to look confident, it wasn't real. She could tell beneath all the cockiness and bravado Faith was scared. "He worked for the Mayor, Faith, and he will find out what happened to him. It doesn't matter what you did with it, someone's going to find out what happened."_

_Neither of them spoke for a minute as Buffy tried to collect her thoughts. It felt like a standoff and Buffy knew it was one she desperately needed to win. They needed to work together to fix this and they needed help to do it. It couldn't just be forgotten like Faith so obviously wanted._

"_Faith, we can't just let this go. A man is dead and it's our fault."_

"_Let me stop ya right there, B. I don't care that he's dead. He got in the way of me doing my job and that's his fault, not mine. No one's gonna find out 'cause like I said, I took care of it."_

_She looked at her shirt again, like she was trying to dismiss the situation, and all that did was piss Buffy off. "That is such bullshit and we both know it."_

_Faith threw her shirt back in the sink and gave her a steady glare. "Are you fucking with me?"_

"_No," Buffy answered as she stood her ground, "but I think you are with me."_

_Faith's response was not what Buffy wanted. She let out a sarcastic laugh. "Whoa, B. Trying to bring out the big guns, huh?"_

"_As much as you're trying not to show it, I know you're scared. You can't fool me, Faith. I know you care about what happened as much as I do."_

"_You don't know me at all," Faith spit out and stepped toward Buffy, leaning in so their faces were only inches apart. "I'm not one of your friends that you can tell what to do."_

_Suddenly, Buffy knew exactly what to do and how to get to Faith. It was all so clear now. "I'm not gonna tell you what to do, Faith. We're equals, a team, and I'd like to think that at some point we could be friends but first we need to figure this out."_

_Faith just stared at her and Buffy patiently waited for a response. She seemed to be either frozen or thinking it over and Buffy couldn't buy the frozen option. It looked like she was trying to think of a comeback but after a couple minutes Buffy continued on, hoping she had Faith's stubbornness beaten or at the very least subdued._

"_Have you noticed that I've been saying we all this time, Faith?" Buffy asked as Faith looked away and took a step back. "I'm not about to drag you to jail. We're in this together and we need to work together but I think we need some help."_

_Faith continued not to look at her but Buffy thought she might be starting to believe her. "It was a mistake," she finally mumbled in a whisper._

_Buffy sighed and took a step closer. "I know it was, Faith."_

"_What are you gonna do?"_

"_We need to go to Giles and tell him what happened. Maybe he'll know what to do." Buffy opened her mouth to say something else but Faith stopped her._

"_Wait," she said quickly as her head shot up and she looked at Buffy again, "what about the Council? If Wesley finds out he'll tell those stuffy old guys and they might ship me off or something."_

"_Did I say I was going to Wesley?" Buffy tried to smile in order to reassure her but nothing about the situation they were in made her smile. "Giles'll look out for us, Wesley won't. I'm not telling him a thing."_

_Faith nodded and Buffy thought she might actually be coming to terms with everything. It looked like she might even want to cry but was holding it in. She only thought that because she'd never seen Faith look like the way she was before. She didn't look like the tough as nails, not caring about anything but slaying, slayer that Buffy was so used to seeing. At the moment she looked small. Buffy's instincts kicked in right then and she did something she knew Faith wasn't expecting: she hugged her._

_Faith stiffened almost immediately and even though Buffy thought she might try to resist or act out, she didn't. She just stood there for a couple minutes, maybe thinking Buffy would let go but she held her tighter instead. Soon she felt Faith give into the hug, her body relaxing into hers and her head resting on her shoulder._

"_I do care," Faith finally admitted quietly._

"_I know you do," Buffy said, letting a small smile show now that she'd gotten through to Faith. "We'll figure this out."_

They had worked everything out like Buffy had promised, even if there were some kinks in the plan. The Council did end up finding out what happened after some eavesdropping by Wesley but Buffy backed Faith all the way and after somewhat of a standoff, an agreement was reached between the two sides. They wouldn't take Faith back to England and she would do a sort of slayer rehabilitation in Sunnydale. After all, she was needed in the battle against the Mayor.

Buffy was proud of Faith in how she ended up handling everything. She didn't flinch once when the Council was trying to get her. Instead, she stayed with Giles and Buffy and didn't overreact to what was going on. She finally let herself trust the two of them.

When the Mayor found out about his employee he tried to get Faith to join his side instead of turning her in. With Buffy on hers, she told him where to shove his offer. He wasn't exactly thrilled with being turned down and made a point to target the Chosen Two when he tried to ascend. Buffy knew that if Faith hadn't been there at one point during the battle, she wouldn't have made it. She knew she had saved her life.

"Buffy, where'd you go?"

She turned and smiled at her best friend. "Just thinking."

"About Faith?" Willow asked. She didn't even try to hide the smirk on her face and Buffy knew a part of her was enjoying her problem.

Even though she narrowed her eyes, she couldn't help but smile. "It hasn't gotten out of my head and I still can't figure out why I'm dreaming about her."

"There is one reason."

"And I'm not going to include that reason as an actual reason."

Buffy refused to accept that the reason that her dreams featured Faith on a regular basis now was that she was attracted to her. The other slayer was just too different from her. They had different likes and dislikes and Buffy was still in the process of getting over Angel.

Faith was still very hard core about slaying and that subject was all they really had in common. Even with that they always wanted to do different types of training, go to different cemeteries and when they did hang out together after, they could never agree on where to go. One of them always ended up unhappy with the decision.

Still, they got along when it mattered and Buffy knew now she could count on Faith to have her back no matter what. She also had a way to make slaying more fun and Buffy enjoyed the banter they had when they were on patrol. It made being a slayer less lonely.

"Are you ready to have a meeting?"

Buffy turned to Willow as they reached Giles' front door. "Ready as I'll ever be."

Willow laughed as she knocked on the door. They only had to wait a couple seconds before it opened with Faith standing on the other side. She was living with Giles but Buffy knew she was looking for a new place. She'd left the motel room after what happened with Finch and had no intention of ever moving back. Instead, she was trying to find something she could actually call home.

Part of Faith's rehabilitation was that she be supervised at all times so she'd had to move in with Wesley right away. That only lasted until her and Buffy quit the Council over how they wanted to attack the Mayor and then Giles had offered her his spare bedroom. They both agreed it was only temporary as Faith quickly found a job and had said multiple times she was gone the minute she could get an apartment.

"Hey," she greeted them as they walked in. "Giles isn't here. Said he needed to run a couple errands . . . should be back in a few."

Buffy turned and looked at her as Faith shut the door behind her and Willow. "He knew we were coming over but he's running errands?"

Faith shrugged. "Maybe he thought you'd be here earlier."

Willow snickered as she sat down but Buffy narrowed her eyes at her fellow slayer. "We had a late night last night."

"And you left early," Faith said, a smirk prominently on her face. Buffy thought she might have even just looked her up and down and tried not to blush. "You shouldn't be tired . . . unless you had a hot date you didn't tell me about."

"I . . . I . . ." Buffy started and realized she was in danger of the stuttering and babbling Willow had warned her about. "I didn't think you'd be out there much longer."

Faith sat down in a chair as Buffy sat next to Willow on the couch. "Could've used your help after you left. There was some weird vamp meeting that I walked in on or whatever."

"Vamp meeting?" Willow asked curiously.

"Something like that." Faith looked from Willow to Buffy. "Couldn't take any of 'em out 'cause there were too many. Could've used your help, B."

Buffy didn't know what to say so she didn't say anything for a minute. Both she and Faith were looking for signs that someone was trying to take over where the Mayor left off. They'd already taken out one vamp who thought he could take over the hellmouth but Giles and both of them knew that probably was only the start of something bigger. There were plenty of vampires trying to make a name for themselves and what better place to do it than at a hellmouth protected by not one but two slayers.

Giles walked in as Buffy was trying to come up with a response, a bag in his hands. Faith got up quickly and took the bag from him, bringing it into the kitchen as Giles nodded a hello to Buffy and Willow.

"Have you been here long?" he asked as he sat down where Faith had been.

"Only a few minutes," Buffy answered. "Faith was just talking about what she saw after we split last night."

"About that," Giles said as Faith joined them again, sitting on the arm of the couch, "I think it would be best if the two of you patrolled together the entire time. I don't want either of you to get into a situation where you're outmatched. We only know that there are some vampires mobilizing in Sunnydale in an effort to take over where the Mayor left off."

"I still don't get why they'd do that, G-man." Faith looked at all of them with a look that made Buffy wonder if that was the stare Willow had been talking about. "They know the Mayor was super-powerful and we took him out. Don't they get that we'll do the same to them?"

"Vamps are stupid, Faith," Buffy said, not looking at her. She was afraid she'd forget what she was saying if she looked into her eyes. "They're not gonna think we're tough for taking down the Mayor, they'll think the Mayor wasn't all he was cracked up to be. They'll think they're better than that and want to prove it."

Faith nodded. "Then we'll just have to prove them wrong."

"Willow, do you have some time today to go through a couple books?"

Willow looked over at Giles, taking her eyes off the interaction between the two slayers. "I can stop by later this afternoon."

"Good," Giles said, smiling lightly. "Faith, Buffy, the two of you should train a little today."

"I gotta work in an hour."

Buffy looked at Faith finally, confused. "I thought you had the day off."

"I picked up some extra shifts," Faith answered quickly. "I need to make some cash so I can get my own place. I can meet up with you after."

Buffy nodded, still not quite getting over how responsible Faith had become in the last couple months. She had dedicated herself to slaying and now to getting out on her own. That wasn't the Faith Buffy had met when she first showed up in Sunnydale. This Faith was one Buffy liked much better.

"That sounds okay," Buffy said quietly. That meant Faith would be showing up at her house. Because of her dreams, the thought was starting to make her feel uneasy.

Faith either didn't notice her uneasiness or simply didn't call her on it. She only nodded and stood, moving quickly up the stairs. Buffy watched her go, as did Giles and Willow, before Giles turned back to them and became more serious.

"I can do some training on my own until Faith shows up."

Giles nodded, a small smile on his face. "That sounds fine, Buffy. Please patrol with Faith the entire time tonight."

Buffy wanted to respond but knew better than to argue the point when she wasn't going to change his mind. Instead, she only stood up and looked to her best friend. "Well, guess we have our assignments for the day."

"Yeah," Willow said, looking past Buffy to Giles as she stood, "I have to meet with my mom for lunch but I'll stop by after."

"Okay. And Buffy, please remember . . ."

"I know, I know," Buffy interrupted quickly. "Patrol the whole night with Faith, don't separate, blah, blah, something watchery."

"It's good to see you take in what I've been saying."

Buffy didn't say anything else, only smiled at him as she and Willow walked out of the condo and into the sun outside. Neither of them said anything right away but as soon as they reached the street, Willow started to laugh.

"You were having trouble looking at her," she commented, trying to calm how amused she was.

"I know." Buffy hung her head, not wanting to face her laughing friend. "I'm trying not to let it get to me but the dreams are so real, Will. When I look at her, my mind goes right to them. Even more with this new one."

Willow nodded, looking as though she was trying her best not to make light of her dilemma. "You can't let it get to you, Buffy. Faith's gonna think something's wrong. I know you don't want to start fighting with her again."

"No, I don't. I want to be friends but my brain is really pushing the more than friends idea."

"Maybe your brain is telling you something," Willow teased.

"Don't make me hurt you," Buffy said with her eyes narrowed but smiled a second later. "I don't want to think about that right now. I just want to repress until I can talk to Faith like a normal person."

"How's that working for you so far?"

"Give me some time," Buffy said, attempting to sound somewhat confident. "It'll happen as long as I can get the dreams to stop."

"Yeah, good luck with that." Willow looked away from Buffy and down the block. "I should get going. Lots to do and then there's research."

"And I have training."

"Okay," Willow smiled as she turned away from Buffy, "we'll talk later."

"Absolutely." Buffy smiled but once Willow turned away it was gone. Now she was alone with her thoughts and they almost immediately went to Faith. She needed to get over her feelings about her dreams so she could act normally around Faith.

That was what she needed most.

TBC…


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Gah! I thought for sure I had already updated this. Thanks to everyone reading/reviews. I promise the next chapter will be up much, much sooner.

Chapter Two

* * *

The afternoon had been just what Buffy wanted. After she got home from Giles', she relaxed and it was much needed. She ate a good lunch and lounged on the couch watching trashy daytime TV until her brain was numb and thoughts of Faith being more than just a friend and fellow slayer left her. It didn't take as long as she'd thought and for that she was grateful.

Once that happened, she knew she needed to do some sort of training. She had told Giles she was going to before Faith showed up and the other slayer could always tell if she didn't. Buffy wondered how she could do that but Faith always refused to tell her. Instead, she would make a crude joke and tell her to get her little legs moving.

She changed into more comfortable clothes and went for a quick run first, trying to get worked up for when Faith showed up. Faith was always intense with training right from the first second and Buffy wanted to be prepared. Running helped her with sparring, too. She knew her quickness was one thing that helped her get the best of Faith every time. Since graduation, she had a perfect record against her when it came to sparring.

After the run, she grabbed some of the gear they'd taken from the library before it was blown up in the battle and brought it to the back yard. She slowly started to stretch out when she could tell Faith was making her way to the backyard.

That was something she wasn't used to yet and it was something Giles was fascinated by. One night they agreed they knew right where the other was without looking and their watcher thought that was a perfect opportunity to run an experiment on it. It turned out the more they concentrated on each other, the stronger the feeling was. They had worked on it to a point where Buffy could feel Faith's presence from about a block away and she knew Faith could do the same.

"Hey, B. Gettin' all ready and sweaty for me?"

Buffy closed her eyes and tried not to blush at the comment. She didn't want Faith to know how much her comments got to her now. Before she could shake them off or think of a comeback but that didn't happen much anymore. Now they just made her think of Faith in ways that made her uncomfortable.

"Just went for a run before you got here," Buffy said slowly as she turned to see Faith still in her uniform from the warehouse. She cursed herself for thinking Faith looked cute in it. "You wanna work on hand to hand stuff once you get changed?"

Faith shrugged. "Good as anything, I guess. You really need to get a punching bag or something, B. Maybe a target so we could practice with weapons."

"Using my backyard isn't permanent, Faith." Buffy took a couple steps toward her. "I was hoping Giles would look into finding someplace where we could really set up everything we needed. That way I wouldn't have to drag all the gear we need out here each day."

"Like it's really a big deal," Faith commented as she looked over the weapons Buffy had laid out. "They're not heavy for us to carry and they'll make you stronger so it'll be more of a challenge when I kick your ass."

"Faith, you've never kicked my ass." Buffy smirked as she got closer to her, relieved that she was feeling more comfortable. She always enjoyed the playful trash talking they did every time they trained. There wasn't a chance she'd be as dedicated to training if she didn't have Faith to push her. "I beat you every time we spar."

Faith smirked as she leaned in so she was only inches away. "Maybe I just like it when you pin me."

Buffy opened her mouth to say something but there weren't any words she could think of. While she won when they spar, Faith won any battle of words. She always went one step further than Buffy dared to go, leaving her speechless and threatening to blush.

Faith chuckled quietly and winked at her before picking up her bag and walking inside the house so she could change. Buffy watched her go, trying hard not to stare at her ass as she did. If she didn't know any better she could swear Faith was going slow to make a show of it, too. It was almost like she wanted Buffy to check her out.

Once the door closed Buffy turned away, shaking her head in an effort to try and clear her head. Her mind was running a mile a minute and Faith's little one-liners weren't helping. At least training would help. As long as it wasn't sparring anyway.

* * *

"That's a pretty hard hit, B," Faith said as she took off the pads she was wearing.

Buffy smiled as she took a couple steps back from her. They'd been training for about two hours and both had stayed fairly quiet which was new for them. Faith looked a little frustrated and Buffy didn't know how to ask her about it.

She knew Faith hated her job at the distribution warehouse and probably hated all the extra hours she was working even more. From what she could tell it was entry level and pretty thankless but it was all Faith could find on short notice. It seemed to be the kind of job she wouldn't quit though and that's what Buffy liked about it. She always thought of Faith as someone who didn't like working with others and didn't take orders well, especially if it was from someone she didn't respect. There wasn't a whole lot of people Faith respected.

"You haven't exactly been holding back today." Buffy picked up the pads and moved them off to the side.

"Yeah, needed to get out some aggression."

Buffy nodded and looked toward the house, noticing her mother had come home while they were training. "Work, huh?"

"Something like that, yeah," Faith said as she walked toward Buffy. "Wanna call it quits for the day?"

"Sure." Buffy smiled at her before looking at her mom walking out to the backyard. "Hey, Mom."

"I never understand how you girls don't get hurt training like that," Joyce Summers said as she met Buffy and Faith. "It looks like you're hitting so hard."

"We are hitting hard," Faith said before Buffy could get a chance to open her mouth, "but we're slayers. We can take it."

"Yeah, Mom. We had pads on and we heal fast."

Her mother nodded and smiled, looking first to her then at Faith. "Faith, are you staying for dinner?"

Buffy thought Faith looked a little nervous with the question but it also looked like she was trying to hide it. "Dunno, Mrs. S. I came right from work to here and I should probably make an appearance at Giles' at some point."

"I'm sure he knows where you are, honey." Joyce kept her smile. "Why don't you two bring all that equipment inside and you can get cleaned up while I make something, okay?"

She didn't wait for an answer before walking back into the house, leaving the two slayers watching her go. Buffy had to smile at how her mother acted and how she dealt with Faith. She knew much of what happened in the last year, the accidental killing and everything, but her treatment of Faith never changed. Whenever Faith was at the house, she always treated her as though she was one of her own.

"Your mom doesn't take no for an answer, huh?"

"Not really," Buffy answered, smiling. "It's better to do what she says."

* * *

"Your mom's cool, ya know?"

Buffy turned her head to Faith as they walked through their first cemetery of the night. "She can be."

"She doesn't need to give me food every time I go over to your house," Faith said, not looking to Buffy. "That's not why I come over, ya know? I don't come over looking for a handout."

"I know," Buffy responded as she looked around. "That's just my mom."

Faith only nodded and the pair continued to walk through the cemetery. Buffy kept getting a strange feeling, a small little nagging feeling that she wasn't able to shake. They hadn't come across any vampires yet and even though it was still early and it was only the first cemetery, it felt odd they hadn't had any action. It made her think they might be ambushed.

It was eerily quiet, too. That was something Buffy was used to some nights but not since they'd had to take down a coupe feeble attempts at vampires wanting to stake a claim on the hellmouth. It seemed there were always groups of vamps trying to take over but as Faith liked to point out, vamps were mostly stupid.

Buffy stopped as Faith put a hand on her shoulder. "What?"

"Thought I heard something," Faith said in a hushed voice. "Think there's something on the other side of the crypt ahead."

Buffy looked ahead to the crypt in the distance and tried to concentrate on any sound. Sure enough, she thought she heard some sort of rustling ahead and maybe some whispering. She nodded to Faith and they quietly approached the crypt, trying for the element of surprise.

They only managed to make it halfway there before a group of three vampires, two men and one woman, rounded the corner and quickly stopped once they noticed they were not alone. Buffy and Faith stopped, too, both looking at the trio.

The female vampire looked at the others and smiled. "Slayers."

"Devon will reward us greatly if we take out the slayers," one of the men responded.

"Devon?" Buffy asked and looked to Faith who only shrugged.

"You don't very tough, slayers." The other male vamp said, snarling. "You're both kinda . . . small."

"No one calls me small and lives," Faith said as she grabbed the stake she had tucked in her jacket. "I think you really pissed her off, too."

Buffy looked at Faith, seeing the all too familiar look in her eyes. Faith was ready for a fight and she was waiting on Buffy for the word. She noticed the ever-present smirk, too, as she reached for her own stake and smiled at her.

Whatever other problems they had with each other, this was something the Chosen Two could always agree on. Synchronized slaying, as they both liked to call it, was something they never needed to practice. As long as they didn't get too caught up in the moment, which happened less and less now with Faith, they knew exactly what to do to help the other if they needed it. It made slaying easy most nights. There were always hard fights and they got a definite workout but never any close calls.

"You know, Faith," Buffy started as her smile turned into a grin, "they did a little." She turned to the trio of vamps. "Would you like to see what happens when vampires hurt my feelings?"

The trio looked at each other, like they didn't know if they should respond. After a few seconds they finally seemed to give up on having a battle of words and charged the slayers instead. Buffy heard Faith let out a sarcastic laugh as they both met the vamps halfway.

Buffy soon found herself fighting one of the men and the woman vamp while she heard Faith begin laughing. From the sound of the hit Faith landed, she probably had just broken her vampire's nose. She shook her head and concentrated on taking care of the two currently attacking her.

She was shocked in that they were both somewhat skilled fighters. Not nearly as skilled as she was of course, but they both managed to get some hits in. Buffy quickly went to work trying to incapacitate one so she could work on staking the other but for a few minutes she couldn't move one away for long enough.

"We're going to take you down, Slayer," the female vamp grunted out as Buffy pushed her away.

"Don't think so." Buffy quickly kicked the male one in the stomach hard, sending him flying a few feet. In an instant, she used all her slayer strength to slug her across the face. "You're nowhere near good enough. I can't even give you an A for effort here."

She heard Faith chuckle at the line then a grunt came in her direction. Buffy knew she wasn't in any trouble but she still wanted to get these vamps staked just in case. She got her stake ready and after one more hit to the face she had the woman caught off guard and staked her in one quick motion. The male vamp was already running to her but she used his momentum and threw him into a tree. He landed with a thud and she moved toward him quickly.

He stumbled up and feebly tried to attack again but Buffy was having none of that. She jumped and kicked him again before staking him. A smirk slowly appeared on her face and she turned to notice Faith had one of her own as she stood a few feet away.

"I know you were done with yours as I was staking the woman," Buffy said as she brushed off any vamp dust that might have gotten on her clothes. "You could've helped with this last one."

Faith shrugged. "I know you had it under control. Didn't look like he was much work."

"He wasn't," Buffy admitted. "What the hell were they talking about?"

"Dunno, B. Maybe this guy's the new wannabe big bad."

"Maybe." Buffy thought for few seconds as they began to walk through the cemetery again. "Have you ever heard of a vampire wanting to please someone?" Faith snickered and Buffy groaned. "Mind out of the gutter, Faith."

"I just love it when you talk about pleasing someone."

Buffy started to stammer and blush but quickly recovered, trying her best to look at Faith so she could show Faith's comments didn't bother her the way they did. "Okay, let's try this: have you ever heard of a vamp talk about getting rewarded? Ever heard the name Devon?"

Faith shook her head. "Never heard the name. Vamps try suicide missions against us all the time but they don't do it so they can be rewarded by some other vamp."

"Maybe Giles has heard of him." Buffy sighed. "I have a feeling tomorrow's gonna be a more intense research day."

"G-man does love to research." Faith looked at her with a raised eyebrow. "At least we have a name now . . . even though we know nothing else."

"Better than what we had yesterday," Buffy pointed out but sighed anyway as she noticed a fresh grave and a vamp nearby. "I have a feeling this is gonna be a long night."

"Best kind of night, B," was all Faith said as she rushed toward the unsuspecting vampire. Buffy couldn't help but smile at her action.

At least an active night meant it wasn't a boring one.

* * *

The next morning Buffy was a mix of relaxation and uneasiness. She was relaxed because she thankfully had a peaceful sleep. There weren't any dreams of naked activities with Faith and even better, none of Faith being her girlfriend. She hoped there wouldn't be a repeat of that since she still didn't know how to deal with what her mind was showing her.

The uneasiness was due to patrol the night before. It had been a somewhat active night with both slayers staking their share of vampires but it was their first big encounter that had her slayer sense on high alert.

Buffy didn't like the fact that neither she nor Faith had heard the name Devon before. She had at least partially paid attention when Giles went on and on about past vampires or legendary ones over the past couple years and she'd never heard that name. Even though it didn't look like it, Buffy knew Faith paid more attention than she did and that only meant one thing in her mind: they were dealing with someone unknown.

It was much easier when vampires made their presence known right away and vamps had a tendency to do that. Buffy figured they liked the attention. She and Faith were normally confronted quickly by whatever big shot who thought they could best them but that wasn't happening now. Whoever Devon was, he had people scouting for him. He had followers.

Because of this new development, Buffy was up early and out of her house only a few minutes after her mother left for work. After the patrol Faith had told her Giles would probably want to get started right away on their discovery and Buffy agreed. He would want any time he could get for research.

She tried to walk quickly over to Giles' place but obviously it was quick enough for Faith. Once she was a block away she noticed Faith walking toward her.

"Faith?" Buffy looked at her curiously as they met on the sidewalk. "Why are you here?"

"Couldn't sleep . . . hung out for awhile but after I ate I needed a little fresh air." Faith smiled slightly. "It's kinda boring at Giles'."

"I'll bet," Buffy said, letting a smile show. "Did you tell him anything about patrol?"

"Nah, I was waiting for you to get here," Faith answered as they started walking toward the condo. "I'm sure he'll want you to tell it, too."

Buffy looked at Faith and could tell she didn't like that Giles had a tendency to look to Buffy to confirm what Faith said every time they went over patrols. She could swear he asked for Faith's opinion at times when Buffy went over patrol but she didn't think he did it as much with her.

"No, I bet he wants us both there so we can watch him think out loud and then start muttering which texts he'll need to go through."

Faith didn't say anything in response and the two of them walked the rest of the way to the condo in silence. Buffy thought Faith was acting different than normal and she didn't completely believe that she was walking her way because she was killing time. She wanted to ask her about it but thought she wouldn't get an honest answer anyway. Both of them were still somewhat guarded around each other.

When they walked in, Giles was walking out of the kitchen with a cup of tea. "Faith, I was wondering where you went off to."

"Went outside for a while," Faith mumbled out as she sat down.

Giles looked at her then to Buffy before continuing. "Did anything eventful happen on patrol last night?"

Buffy turned her head to Faith but could see right away that she was supposed to tell Giles what happened. "Yeah, when we were going through the first cemetery we ran into a group of vamps and they mentioned a name we've never heard before."

"Yeah," Faith agreed, "ever heard of a vamp named Devon, G-man?"

Giles looked down and didn't say anything for a minute, likely thinking. Finally, he looked up and shook his head lightly. "I don't recall reading that name anywhere. Was he in the group?"

"No, but I think he's the leader." Buffy looked at Faith quickly to make sure she wasn't going to add anything before continuing. "They said something like that if they took care of us they would be rewarded by him."

"Greatly rewarded," Faith added in a sarcastic tone.

"I'll need to check my sources." Giles stood up quickly. "Are you sure he wasn't one of them?"

Buffy nodded. "Nope, not one of them. He's gotta be up to something though if he has vamps out attempting to do his dirty work for him."

"Probably has power then, too."

Giles looked down at the two slayers. "I'm going to make some calls, see what I can find out. I'll need to go through some texts, too."

"I'm running on empty, G," Faith said. "I think I'm gonna need to crash for a couple hours."

Their watcher only nodded before walking out of the room, probably eager to start researching on who this new threat actually was. Buffy looked at Faith to see her already leaning back on the couch, eyes closed.

"You're really tired, huh?"

Faith opened an eye and raised an eyebrow. "Told you I couldn't sleep."

"Yeah." Buffy stood, thinking Faith probably wanted to get some sleep. "I should get going then. I'll catch up with you later."

"Okay."

Buffy quietly walked out of the condo, thinking Faith was probably already sleeping. Even though she didn't look it, she could tell that Faith was tired. She thought for a minute about why she looked that way but suddenly saw Willow walking toward her and the thoughts went away.

"Buffy, you're up early."

"Yeah," Buffy agreed with a smile, "we might have found something out last night so I got here early so Faith and I could go over it with Giles."

"Oh, what did you find?"

"We didn't find anything," Buffy clarified as they began to walk together, "but we did get a name out of a group of vamps we staked. Some vamp named Devon."

"Does Giles know who that is?"

Buffy shook her head. "He's checking it out now. I just left 'cause he was starting to get into research mode and Faith looked tired. I think she was asleep by the time I got to the front door."

Willow raised an eyebrow. "Faith was tired, like not sleeping?"

"I guess."

"Maybe she's having the same . . . trouble that you are."

Buffy looked at Willow to see she was smirking. "I don't think that's the reason. I think she's just too busy thinking about how soon she can move out. She doesn't like living with Giles all that much."

"I can see that. I'm betting they don't have a lot in common." Willow paused and stopped walking. "Should I go there and help Giles?"

"Maybe later," Buffy said as she shook her head lightly. "He'll have some sort of researchy plan of attack and then he'll need help. Let's go for mochas instead."

Willow laughed. "I like that plan better."

TBC…


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Three

* * *

The feel of Faith was amazing.

Her hands moved over Buffy's body so skillfully and it made Buffy wonder how she knew exactly how to touch her. She seemed to know how to make her sigh and moan and basically do whatever she wanted. Those talented hands had that kind of power over her.

They hadn't even made it to the bed yet. Faith had her pressed against the wall of the bedroom and they were kissing frantically. Buffy was mostly naked as Faith was always quick about getting her clothes off and exploring her body. She wasn't that fast though so Faith was still fully clothed and there was no chance to strip her now. Not when Faith was pressed against her and had two fingers buried in her.

They broke apart and Faith started kissing and sucking on her neck as she thrust in and out of her. "Fuck, B. You feel so good tonight."

Buffy only groaned as she gripped Faith's back and wrapped a leg around her. They were going fast but Buffy knew that only meant that they were in for a long night. They could never seem to get enough of each other.

The fact that Faith was still clothed irritated her, especially since she could feel her clothes against her skin. She almost wanted have her stop so she could get more naked but Faith was very determined at the moment. It seemed she wouldn't be stopping until Buffy came and came hard and Buffy really didn't have a problem with that.

Faith gave her a hard, fast kiss as she continued to thrust into her. "You're so close already, aren't you? I can feel it."

"Yeah," Buffy moaned out, not able to deny it and not wanting to either. She wanted Faith more and more everyday so there wasn't any way she would deny wanting her.

A few more expert thrusts from Faith and Buffy cried out, coming hard. Her body went limp for a moment but Faith was well prepared for that, holding her close and keeping her from turning into a puddle on the floor.

After a minute Buffy felt she could stand on her own and she moved out of Faith's arms or as far as she could since Faith wasn't letting her move all that much. Their eyes met for a second before they were kissing again and Buffy was trying desperately to take back control. She wanted to get rid of the rest of her clothes but by the look in Faith's eyes she knew she was going to have to be a little more aggressive tonight.

She slowly pushed Faith back and the other slayer was caught off guard just enough to turn the tables on her and spin them around. Buffy quickly pulled off her shirt, revealing a lacy black bra underneath. She met Faith's eyes and noticed how dark they were, almost black. There was a smirk on her face as well, making her know exactly what Faith expected.

That gave her an idea, something that Faith definitely wasn't expecting of her. She gave her a smirk her own before taking a few steps, dragging Faith along by her belt. Buffy almost thought she might say something, maybe about her attempt at dominance, but there was only silence between them as she sat on the edge of the bed and Faith remained standing.

Buffy began slowly unbuckling Faith's belt then moved to unbutton her tight leather pants. She leaned in and placed a light kiss on her stomach, only stopping when she felt Faith's hand on her head. She looked up and saw something didn't think she'd see. The look she saw showed her that Faith wanted her to be sure in what she was about to do.

That look made her fall for Faith even more. She only gave her a small smile as she leaned in again . . .

Buffy woke up in such a panic she moved when she jumped up and fell out of her bed. She hit the floor with a loud thud, making her cry out and curse at the same time.

"Buffy!" Her mom nearly ran into her room, looking every bit the frantic parent. "What happened?"

The light in her room was quickly turned on as well, allowing Buffy to become more aware of her surroundings. Her bed was a disaster and she was, too. Her pajamas looked like she'd been trying to take them off in the night and she was sure the rest of her looked just as disheveled.

"Buffy?"

Shaking her head, Buffy managed to snap out of the panic her head was in and looked up at her mother. "I . . . I'm okay, Mom."

"Are you sure?" Joyce leant down and outstretched her hand. "I heard noises and then a scream. Did you have a bad dream?"

"Uh, yeah," Buffy answered quietly as she took her mother's hand and let her pull her up off the floor. "I guess I did have a . . . bad dream."

"Are you going to be okay? I don't think you've ever fallen out of bed over a dream before."

Buffy looked at the concerned face her mother was giving her and felt bad for not wanting to tell her what was going on. There was no way she would be able to tell her though. She would never get over the embarrassment of having to describe what her dreams were about. Talking with her mother about a sex dream would be bad enough but one that featured Faith would be beyond horrifying.

"Yeah," Buffy said as she sat down on her bed. "I'm okay. Just a little startled, I guess."

"Okay," Joyce said uneasily, "if you're sure. Try and get some sleep, honey. I'm sure you have a big day with Mr. Giles and Faith tomorrow."

Buffy tried not to blush at the mention of Faith. "Lots of training and research."

Her mother smiled softly. "See you in the morning."

"Good night," Buffy said quietly as she watched her leave the room and shut the door behind her.

She stood and shut off her light before laying back down. The dream kept replaying over and over in her mind even though she was trying desperately to stop. It felt too real though, so real that she swore she could feel Faith's hands on her.

For a moment Buffy let her mind wander and think of what it would really feel like to have Faith's hands move over her in such a possessive manner. She wondered if it would feel like it did in the dreams, if it would be such an incredible turn on. She wondered if she would be able to feel how Faith felt about her when she did it. It seemed to be that way in the dreams.

Her dream self had really fallen for Faith and that amazed her. Right now, the pair were only trying to rebuild and maintain a friendship and that was taking a lot of work. The trust was finally there but Buffy still didn't know much about Faith and never knew how to ask. She also still had to tell herself to answer whenever Faith asked her a personal question. Those questions were rarely sexual unless it was a sarcastic one so she knew Faith was just curious and she should answer.

Buffy wrapped the covers around her and closed her eyes, hoping to fall back into a restful sleep. There was so much to do during the day that all she wanted right now what a peaceful and less confusing sleep.

* * *

It had been two days but no one had found any answers on who Devon was. Giles' oldest texts didn't mention the name at all and Buffy and Faith hadn't had any other encounter with a vampire who brought the name up. They actually hadn't had luck on patrol in general.

Buffy had spent most of the morning at her watcher's place reading and it was the worst activity in the world to her. Reading about every vampire who tried to make a name for themselves and not having any of them be the one she was looking for felt like a waste of her time.

"This is pointless," she said out loud, causing Willow and Giles to look up at her.

"It is necessary we look through these texts in order to find some information on this vampire," Giles said matter-of-factly.

"It's a little boring but it'll pay off when we find what we're looking for," Willow added.

"What if he's not in any of these books though?"

"Are you inferring I need to acquire additional books?" Giles asked. "We all quit the Council so I would need to find other avenues to get them."

"No, I mean maybe he's not in any book," Buffy said. "Maybe no one has even written about him."

"You're not thinking this Devon is older than the books I have, are you?" Giles set his book down on the coffee table. "I doubt he would've flown under the Council's radar for that long only to surface here and now."

Buffy shook her head. "Maybe he's not in any of these books because he's too new. Maybe he's planning on using Sunnydale in order to put himself in these books."

"That would make some sense," Willow added. "It's like what we saw with the vamps making a move right after the Mayor. What better place to prove yourself than here? If you take out a slayer, you'll definitely be added to the Council's books and gain the respect of lots of vamps."

Giles looked down and picked his book up. "I guess that is a possibility but we still need to go through everything we have just to be sure. We want to be prepared."

The front door opened as Giles finished speaking and Faith walked in, looking a little tired. She had told Buffy the night before that she had an early morning shift at the warehouse but that she would have the afternoon free. She looked at the clock and saw it was two in the afternoon.

"Hey," Faith greeted them as she walked past them to the kitchen, "any luck today?"

"A whole lot of nothing," Buffy responded. "I just made an excellent point that maybe Devon isn't in any of the books because he hasn't done anything document-worthy yet."

Willow chuckled quietly but Giles shook his head lightly. "That doesn't mean it's okay to stop researching. Until we know for sure who he is, for all we know he could be in one of these books."

"Maybe someone in town knows something," Faith commented as she appeared in the living room, holding an already half eaten sandwich. "There's lots of vamps and demons who'll tell us what they know in return for remaining alive."

Buffy smiled, seeing an excuse to stop researching for the day. "Faith, you up for a little trip to a couple demon bars?"

Faith grinned. "I'm always up for one of those trips. No way for vamps to escape during the day."

"Okay, ask some questions but please be discrete about it." Giles looked at the two of them warily. "The last thing we need is for word to get that we're aware and looking for this person."

"Sure thing, G-man," Faith said before looking at Buffy. "Just let me change and we'll go."

"Great." Buffy smiled at her, liking the fact she hadn't had a dream last night so she wasn't on edge as she did. Faith returned the smile before climbing the stairs with her food.

Hopefully, the afternoon would be more relaxed and Buffy could concentrate on working on her friendship with Faith, not in trying to avoid close interaction.

* * *

"We need a car," Faith said as they walked to the seedy part of Sunnydale.

"Walking isn't so bad," Buffy responded. "It's not like we're walking miles and miles."

"Yeah, but it would be nice to get to these bars in a few short minutes instead of much longer. Why can't we take Giles' car or your mom's?"

Buffy looked at her with a raised eyebrow. "Do you have your license?"

Faith smirked and reached into her pocket, pulling out a card. "I know you have one, too, so there's no excuse for us walking."

She looked at it and sure enough, Faith had a driver's license. It was a Massachusetts one but it was valid. Buffy looked over the details and smiled as she looked back at Faith. "Lehane? Here I thought you were a one name kind of girl."

"Nah," Faith said, laughing, "I just don't like it much and no one ever asked. The main stuff I've kept from Boston are the name and that license. Work's making me get a California one so soon it'll just be the name."

Buffy nodded. "You can volunteer some of that stuff, you know? Normal people don't go around asking everyone what their last names are."

"Never took for you being normal." Faith winked at her. "Finally, we're here."

The pair looked over Willy's before walking in. Once they entered, both of them eyed the dreary surroundings before giving each other a look and walking toward the bar. There were maybe a dozen vamps and demons throughout the place and none of them looked to be any threat.

Willy saw them from behind the bar and there was a mixture of dread and fear in his eyes. "Wow, not one but two slayers stopping in today," he said in a louder than normal voice. "What do I owe the pleasure?"

Buffy took a quick scan of the bar again and saw all eyes were on them now. Both she and Faith were armed but she really didn't want to get into a fight today. She really liked the top she had on and didn't want to ruin it.

"Nice way to make it known exactly who we are," Faith said. "Do you want me to talk loudly about what will happen to anything that tries something today?"

"No one wants any trouble," Willy assured. "I don't want any damage to the place."

"We're not here for any trouble unless someone tries to start something," Buffy said. "We're looking for some information."

"Information's pretty scarce since the two of you took down the Mayor," Willy said. "It's been pretty slow in here since you took out most of my customers in that battle. Not much has been happening."

"That's bullshit and you know it," Faith said as she leaned forward. "Vamps and demons pass through here all the time. Just because we took down the Mayor doesn't mean vamps are gonna stop coming to the hellmouth."

"Ah, okay, maybe it hasn't."

"Don't screw around with us, Willy," Buffy warned. "We've agreed to not do any damage to the bar but there was no agreement to not do any damage to you."

Faith gave her a look and Buffy knew she was wondering whether or not she was serious. Neither of them liked the fact that Willy harbored vampires and demons that needed to be killed but the bar was also a place where they could get information on vamps they were tracking. Since its existence had proved helpful they allowed it to exist but that didn't mean they couldn't threaten.

"Okay, okay," Willy said and leaned in. "There's been some talk."

"What kind of talk?" Faith asked.

"After you blew up the Mayor lots of vamps saw Sunnydale as a free area again," Willy said quietly. "No one needed to check in to make sure their plans didn't interfere with him. I think lots of them are starting to come here. You might wanna be prepared."

"We're always prepared." Buffy narrowed her eyes. "Ever hear of a vamp named Devon? He ever pass through here?"

Willy's demeanor changed ever so slightly, like he was trying his best not to look nervous. Buffy wondered if Faith noticed what she did but when she quickly glanced over she didn't look it. Faith was too busy staring Willy down.

"I think you better answer us, Willy," Faith said in a quiet but menacing tone. "If you choose not to cooperate with us, I will stake every vamp in this bar. That can't be very good for business."

He let out a slow breath and rubbed the back of his neck. "Look, he hasn't come through here, okay?"

"Have you heard of him?"

"Yeah, I've heard of him." Willy's eyes scanned the bar quickly before looking at the two slayers again. "A few nights ago a couple nicely dressed vampires came in here, started talking to some of the tables about doing some work for a vamp named Devon. Most of the tables told 'em where to shove their offers but three or four left the bar with them."

"Have they only come in here once?" Buffy asked.

Willy nodded. "So far, yeah. Since they were kind of successful I wouldn't put it past them to come back and try again."

The two slayers shared a look before Buffy spoke. "You're gonna have to let us know if they come back."

"You're putting me in a bad position, slayers," he said, looking uncomfortable. "I've got a reputation to keep up here. Giving the two of you information like that is gonna hurt business."

"You don't really have a choice here," Faith said. "If it helps any, we won't advertise where we got the info."

"You slayers are all right," Willy said with a sad smile before clearing his throat. "Look, I told you I don't know anything."

Buffy turned her head to Faith and nodded. "I guess we'll just have to look somewhere else. If we hear of any trouble coming out of this bar though, we'll be back."

"Yeah, we'll cause more trouble than you'll know what to do with," Faith added.

When Willy didn't respond right away, they turned and walked out of the bar. Faith squinted and pulled out a pair of sunglasses and Buffy did the same.

"Isn't it weird that the sun always seems brighter after you've come out of a dank, disgusting bar?" Faith asked, a smile on her face.

"One of the upsides of living in Sunnydale," Buffy commented. "Probably one of the only upsides actually."

Faith laughed. "I dunno, I kind of like the slaying part."

Buffy shook her head but didn't comment. "What kind of vamp dresses up and walks into a dive like Willy's to recruit other vamps? Why?"

"Maybe if they're doing it at Willy's they're doing it at other places, too," Faith offered. "We should go to the other hideouts and see if anyone will talk to us. If I remember right, the other bartenders aren't as easy to get info from as Willy."

"Yeah, but they aren't human either so it'll be easier to apply a little incentive to get them to talk." Buffy looked around as they turned a corner and noticed the streets were quiet, only a few people walking along the sidewalks. "Doesn't hurt that they won't dare come outside either."

"True," Faith said. "At least we can tell Giles this wasn't a wasted trip so far. We know this Devon is recruiting vamps."

"Yeah, now he can't accuse us of coming here just to get out of research." Buffy smiled at Faith as they stopped in front of a rundown building. "Maybe we'll even get lucky and run into those vamps."

"And maybe we can have a little fun beating on some vamps and demons while we look."

Buffy pushed open the door to an unmarked building that the two of them knew what a demon hideout and bar. "Sounds like a plan."

* * *

"I don't think I've come across anything like it," Giles said.

"Is that good or bad?" Faith asked.

The two slayers just returned from their trip to the vamp and demon bars with news that seemed be the same at each place. After they left Willy's, they had visited two other bars and after using a little slayer-type persuasion, they found out that the two sharply dressed vampires had visited each place.

What surprised them was that the vampires weren't just recruiting vampires but demons as well. They didn't have too much luck but the bartenders at the other two places each said the pair didn't leave alone but with three or four vamps and demons. That was more successful than Buffy and Faith wanted.

"I'm not sure," Giles answered. "I don't recall any vampire trying to get other vampires to work with them like this. Normally, it's done through fear and never are there any demons involved. Many demons can barely stomach even the thought of vampires."

"That doesn't sound good."

"No, it doesn't," Giles agreed. "We may be dealing with a completely new situation."

Buffy sat down on the couch. "So what do we do?"

"First, we need to find the two vampires that are recruiting others to join this Devon." Giles sat down in the chair and sigh. "Maybe they will even be able to lead you to him."

The three of them sat in silence for a minute. Buffy didn't like how little of a plan they had. Simply patrolling every night in the hope that they would come across a nicely dressed vamp with information on Devon wasn't enough. It was too vague.

"That's not much of a plan."

"I think it's all we've got, B," Faith said. "We're bound to see someone who knows something when we patrol. They obviously want word to get around that Devon wants them. The more vamps they recruit, the easier it will be for us to find one that has the info we need."

"Hopefully, it doesn't take too long but that is the idea." Giles looked serious and Buffy knew that meant he was thinking over the situation. "If we're lucky, maybe you'll find someone tonight during patrol."

TBC…


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter Four

* * *

"So, is this to your liking?" Faith asked in a somewhat sarcastic tone.

Buffy looked around at the restaurant, a small Italian place that she didn't even know existed. She wondered how Faith knew since she was definitely not the dating type.

"It's nice," she said. "How did you know about it?"

Faith shrugged. "I was walking through this area on patrol months ago and saw it. I remembered it when you started nagging about wanting a real date."

"I do not nag."

"A little," Faith said, smirking. "At least you look hot when you do it."

She could only shake her head as the waitress took their order and left them alone in their secluded booth in the corner of the restaurant. It was more romantic than she really thought Faith was capable of. She expected something more casual, not something that required her to put in a real effort when getting ready to see Faith.

"It's too bad we have to patrol after this," Buffy commented. "I really don't wanna patrol in this skirt."

"I bet we can skip a night." Faith smiled, showing her dimples. "It'd be more fun to try and get you out of that skirt without having dirt and vamp dust on it."

"Giles won't be happy."

"He'll deal and why would you ever mention Giles on a date you wanted? You should be telling me how hot I look and what exactly we'll be doing after dinner. Be specific."

The look on Faith's face made Buffy laugh and blush a little because she knew Faith was only partially kidding. She never kept her hands to herself when they were alone. "You better behave yourself."

"You know I can never completely turn all this off," Faith said as she gestured to herself.

Buffy laughed again but this time Faith joined her, making Buffy notice how beautiful she was when she laughed. It was those type of traits she noticed about Faith that made she wonder why she didn't realize her attraction to Faith sooner.

"Stop thinking so much, B," Faith said, snapping Buffy out of her train of thought. "We supposed to be eating at a restaurant I can just barely afford and then we're spending the night at my apartment doing something a lot more fun. No thinking required."

There was no arguing with the look on Faith's face so Buffy decided to wait until later to tell her she really needed to go back to the dorms instead. When she looked away though, Faith sighed.

"Don't tell me you can't stay."

When Buffy looked up at Faith she could see how much she didn't like what she was going to say. "I have a class in the morning."

"You know I can't stay with you." Faith shook her head. "Not with your roommate there 24/7."

Buffy sighed, not knowing what to say since nothing would help either feel less frustrated with their situation. "Can we just not think about that right now?"

Faith grumbled but didn't say anything for a minute. Buffy didn't like the silence but it was better than starting a fight about her class schedule versus Faith's work schedule in the restaurant.

Suddenly, Faith looked up and into Buffy's eyes, a serious look on her face. "You should move in with me."

Buffy's eyes popped open once those words were uttered and she slowly sat up in bed.

While she was thankful she didn't just have a sex dream that left her turned on and confused this one was just as strange.

She couldn't think of a reason why she would dream of being on a date with Faith. There didn't seem to be any purpose in it, simply dreaming of having a romantic dinner with her friend. That was, until the very end of the dream.

Buffy never thought of Faith as acting that way. It was true that she was slowly seeing a different side of her in the last few months but not one that had her angry that she couldn't see more of her. Faith still didn't seem clingy or someone who would want that type of relationship with someone. She didn't talk to her much about her extracurricular activities anymore but Buffy thought that was more due to her not having time for any.

Taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly, Buffy felt her body slowly relax again. She needed to work hard to shove this new dream to the back of her mind. She needed to be able to work with Faith without looking at her and seeing someone that cared enough about her to ask her to move in with her.

* * *

The last two nights were a bust. Buffy and Faith not only hadn't come across anyone who could tell them anything about Devon and his plans but they hadn't had much luck at staking vampires either. It was almost as though they were avoiding them. Both of them were annoyed, Faith more so than Buffy. She had been muttering to herself most of the night and all Buffy could make of it was that it was probably a string of curse words.

"We better fuckin' find something to stake in this cemetery," Faith said in an irritated tone. "This is getting ridiculous."

"Yeah," Buffy agreed. "I don't like that it's so quiet. Nothing good comes from it."

"Calm before the storm or something?"

"Yeah."

Both of them stayed silent for a few minutes as they listened to their surroundings. Buffy was beginning to get the feeling they were going to get some company very soon and while she wanted to stake something just as much as Faith she didn't like the feeling she was getting. It felt like she and Faith were about to stumble across something big.

Sure enough, as the pair walked deeper into the cemetery they began to hear the quietest of sounds. It wasn't the normal rustling or some newborn vamp stomping around as it became aware of their surroundings either. It was the sound of voices, several of them.

"Since when do vamps discuss things?"

Buffy turned her head to look at Faith to see her scowling slightly. "Not sure. We should check it out. Maybe we'll get some info and be able to stake something."

Faith nodded and they sped up their pace, staying silent as they approached where the voices were coming from. Buffy realized they were coming up on the center of the cemetery where there was a good amount of crypts, places she and Faith often found groups of vamps.

"Oh, shit."

Buffy almost ran into Faith as the other slayer stopped quickly. She looked to where Faith was looking and almost said the same. Off in the distance was a large group of vamps, at least 15 or 20, crowded around two other vamps dressed in suits as the pair stood above them atop a couple of large gravestones. Buffy quickly grabbed hold of Faith's arm and moved so they were hidden by a group of bushes.

"We need to stay out of sight," Buffy whispered as they took cover. "There's too many."

Faith got down next to her as they hid, gently moving the bushes to get a better view. "Yeah, don't think we could take all of 'em."

Buffy smiled at the comment, liking that Faith no longer went into a situation without thinking. There was a time when she wouldn't listen to Buffy, wouldn't hide and the situation always ended badly. Now they were finally doing it the right way, getting information first before moving in to stake the vamps. Thankfully, none of the vamps saw or heard them.

"We need you, plain and simple, boys and girls. We want high numbers and let me tell you, you want to be with us."

"Why the hell would we do that?" one of the vamps in the group yelled, causing a couple others to laugh.

The two vamps on the gravestones looked at each other before the second one spoke. "Who here thinks living in Sunnydale could be better, easier?" He paused for a moment, possibly to hear a response but none came so he continued. "Right now you have to fight your food and sometimes those crafty, puny humans get away, don't they?"

There were some murmurs of agreement from the crowd, making the vamp smirk. "And when they get away you drink what, pig's blood? How demeaning! How degrading! It's beneath you, beneath all of us. Of course, when you do get a proper meal you've got not one but two slayers to deal with. Not so fun, right?"

Buffy could feel Faith move closer to her as they watched and she tried her best not to stiffen as their bodies brushed against each other. Her mind threatened to drift off, remembering how Faith would hold her in her dreams, how protective it felt, but she pushed the thoughts away. She couldn't get distracted when there were so many vampires close by.

The crowd of vampires began to become more interested in what the talking vamp had to say and by the smile on his face, he knew it. "What if you didn't have to work so hard for your food? What if you didn't have to deal with those pesky, puny slayers?"

"I'll show him puny," Faith muttered and Buffy grabbed her arm before she could even think about getting up.

"Not now, Faith."

"That is what Devon can do for you," the vamp continued. "If you join us you will get so much. Human slaves, no slayers, the ability to do whatever you want without consequence. No one will stop you."

"Who the hell is Devon?" one of the vamps in the crowd yelled out.

"He can be your worst enemy but he wants to be your best friend," the other vampire standing on the graves responded. "Join him and he can give you everything. All you have to do is join his team and work for him."

"I don't work for nobody!" a vamp yelled.

The two vampires shared a look before they continued on. "Work? Doing a few tasks for Devon and in return getting a lifetime of rewards? I don't call that work and that's what Devon can do for you."

"It's an incredible deal we're offering for you tonight," the other vamp added. "Now who's with us?"

Multiple loud arguments immediately started among the crowd of vamps and Buffy felt Faith begin to tug on her arm. She looked over at her and gave her a questioning glance.

Faith leaned in, her lips only a couple inches from her ear. "We should get out of here. Can't do anything about this many."

The comment surprised her since it came from Faith but she nodded and they quietly left their hiding spot and began walking quickly toward the entrance of the cemetery. Even though the arguments were loud and there was little chance they would be discovered, both of them stayed silent until they had exited the cemetery and had begun to walk down the street.

"What the fuck was that?" Faith finally asked as they walked.

"Something very strange."

"Who is this Devon and why wasn't he the one selling himself?"

Buffy shrugged. "We need to find out who he is and what his plan is. Trying to get all the vamps together to work for him can't be good."

"And him wanting to take us out doesn't exactly sit well with me," Faith said. "I'm not about to get offed by a half-assed vamp attack."

"He already has vampires working for him," Buffy pointed out. "Makes me wonder how long he's been here."

Faith raised an eyebrow as she turned her head toward her. "You're not thinking he was here before we killed the Mayor, are you?"

"Maybe not here but aware of the situation," Buffy said but didn't like how it sounded once she said it. She didn't like sounding paranoid. "I don't know but he obviously already has vamps lined up to help him."

"Ready to die for him, too." Faith shook her head. "Remember the group from the other night? Idiots."

Buffy nodded. "I have a feeling we'll be researching again tomorrow."

"Just fuckin' great," Faith started but then grinned. "Wait, I'm working tomorrow. For once having a job pays off."

"That and the money, right?"

"Yeah, that, too."

They shared a laugh and Buffy realized they had reached her house. She hadn't even realized that Faith had essentially been walking her home.

"I'll see you tomorrow after I get off work."

Buffy looked at Faith and smiled. It had been a good night with her finally. She hadn't been uncomfortable enough to leave even once and that was a huge improvement. "Yeah, I'll probably be there researching and bored out of my mind."

Faith smirked, showing off her dimples in the process. "Better you than me," she laughed at she turned and walked away. "Later."

"See you."

* * *

"I really wish you would have stayed longer," Giles commented as Buffy, Willow and Oz sat around his coffee table that was covered with books.

"Uh, Giles, what about the many, many vampires that have shared hatred of a certain couple of slayers?" Buffy asked. "I thought you taught us not to die."

"I don't mean that you should have attacked them." Giles sighed as he cleaned his glasses. "Maybe you could have stayed hidden and observed long enough to find out where those two vampires were coming from. Maybe you could have followed them."

"Giles, who knows how long we would've had to stay hidden? All of them were starting to argue and vamps are so stupid that it could've gone on forever. I was not staying in the bushes all night."

"Then we're researching again, huh?" Willow asked.

"That is all we can do at the moment," Giles answered. "I received some older texts yesterday from a friend. Maybe we'll have better luck with them."

Giles disappeared then and the three of them looked at each other. Even though they needed all the help they could get in figuring out how to best fight this new threat, Buffy had hoped they would be finished with books. Since Giles always said he had a limited supply, she thought they would be done soon and wouldn't have to keep reading and finding nothing. She didn't expect that her watcher would be calling people and have more books shipped in.

"I've got to meet with the band later but I can help out a little now," Oz said.

"By then Faith will be back from work to take your place."

"I'm sure she'll be thrilled with that," Willow commented and the three of them laughed a little. "You really didn't stake anything last night?"

"We've barely staked anything the last few nights," Buffy said with a sigh. "It makes patrolling more boring than normal and makes Faith super antsy."

"At least you have Faith there," Oz said as he leaned back against the couch. "Better than being alone."

"I guess so." Buffy shared a look with Willow and her friend was grinning like crazy. She knew once the two of them were alone she would be asked about how she liked hiding in the bushes with Faith. Willow seemed to have a lot of fun with her situation.

Giles reappeared then with a box full of books, some appearing to be very old. He set them down on the table and sat in a chair. "We should get started with these."

"How many books did your friend send to you?" Willow asked.

"I have two more boxes like this," Giles answered. "Bernard said he thought these were the ones we might have the best luck with. Please be careful with them. I need to send them back one we're through with them."

"What happens if we don't find anything in these new books?"

"Hopefully, we will find something or perhaps you and Faith will find something on patrol." Giles picked up one of the books and began to open it. "If I need to find other research materials I can do that, too."

Buffy narrowed her eyes at him but didn't respond. The last thing she wanted was to look through shipment and shipment of books trying to finding anything that would give them information on Devon. Most of the books didn't even cover what their new enemy was trying to do. Every big bad she'd ever encountered ruled by fear. They didn't try to convince vamps to join the ranks by asking them.

She still didn't think Devon was in any books. Her opinion was that Devon was too new of a vampire to be in any of the old texts and books that Giles was having them read. Using nicely dressed recruiters and having a sales pitch wasn't something any of the vamps described in the books would ever do. Devon had a style that someone who'd been around multiple centuries would never have.

The book in front of her didn't look appealing and she was sure Devon wasn't in it but she knew Giles wouldn't agree with her. Buffy flipped the book open and started to read about some fifteen century vampire that had nothing to do with Devon.

The afternoon could not pass by fast enough.

* * *

"Sometimes I think you're a genius, B," Faith commented as they walked to her house.

"Anything to get out of there."

Once Faith got back from work Buffy used the excuse that the two of them needed to train in order to get out of more researching. Giles couldn't say no to the two of them taking initiative and using the afternoon to sharpen their slayer skills.

"Can you believe he actually had more books shipped in?"

"I nearly broke my foot on those damn boxes this morning." Faith shook her head. "He never said anything about getting more. Don't think we could've talked him out of it though."

"He's all about the books."

They were silent for a few minutes until they reached Buffy's house. Buffy opened the front door and Faith immediately walked over to the couch and sat down, looking as though she had no intention to train.

"Uh, aren't we going to train?"

"As much as I like to train and spar with ya, B," Faith looked up at her and grinned, "we could just hang out here for a couple hours. That way we get away from the books."

Buffy shook her head and smirked. "I don't know. You've been looking a little rusty."

"That is a lie and you know it."

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Buffy said as she sat down next to her. "What if we spar a little? I try to be on the up and up with Giles."

Faith brushed against her and Buffy tried her best not to stiffen. Every touch from Faith made her flash to one of her dreams and this time it was one of the ones where she could see the love in her eyes. It caught her off guard for a moment but that was all. She hoped Faith didn't notice and the other slayer didn't comment about it.

"You're no fun sometimes," Faith said. "I guess we could spar for a little. Then maybe we could hang out before Giles realizes we did all this just to get out of reading another one of those books."

"I still think Devon's too new to be in any of the books. How he does everything doesn't fit with all the old vamps we've dealt with before."

"Yeah, he's a new kind of asshole."

"I guess that's one way to put it." Buffy leaned back on the couch along with Faith. "I wish he'd just show himself so we could stake him."

"For all we know he was actually one of those two that were recruiting the vamps last night," Faith pointed out.

"We really need to stay for an entire meeting if we ever get a chance to see one again. Giles didn't like that we left without seeing if we could follow the two recruiters."

"Yeah, he said that to me, too," Faith said. "I told him I wasn't gonna risk getting caught. I ain't gonna let any of those vamps take me out. Especially not one dressed in a suit."

"Nah, they wouldn't have done it. They would've told the rest of them to go after us. They looked more like vampires who liked to watch others do their work for them."

"Lazy bastards."

Buffy laughed and relaxed a little more. Over the last couple months she really started to enjoy hanging out with Faith. They were still very different and had vastly different likes and dislikes but getting along was becoming easier and easier. It made her more frustrated that she was having those dreams because she knew they would get along better she didn't think about them very time Faith touched her. She would like to be able to look her in the eye each morning after she had one.

"It's still weird that we're not finding an occasional vamp to stake each night. They couldn't have recruited that many yet, could they?"

"Dunno and it doesn't matter." Faith shrugged. "We're gonna have to find and stake some of his followers. Can't have a vamp army walking around."

Buffy nodded and stood up. "Guess that means we better start training. Don't want you getting rusty since we haven't had the best luck during patrol."

Faith stood up and shook her head, doing her best to look offended. "You know we can't get rusty, B. Slaying in our blood, it's what we're made for." She paused. "But I guess I should demonstrate how not rusty I am."

"Lead the way."

TBC…


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter Five

* * *

Buffy's mind was set on one thing: getting her paper done. Biology wasn't exactly one of her favorite subjects so she knew she needed to concentrate in order to finish it. If she didn't or would simply decide to put it off for later, it might not get done and she needed a good grade on this paper. Willow had already helped her as much as she could so the rest was up to her.

She was starting to get into a good writing groove when she felt hands on her shoulders. She wanted to be mad at the distraction but it only made her smile. "Faith, I have to get my paper done."

Faith leaned down and placed a light kiss on her head. "You've been working on it for awhile now. You can take a break."

"You know I can't do that," Buffy said as she closed her eyes, enjoying the feel of Faith's hands lightly massaging her shoulders. "It's due tomorrow."

"Mm-hmm," Faith mumbled as she moved to wrap her arms around Buffy. "Doesn't mean you can't take a little break."

"Yes, it does." Buffy turned her head slightly so she could look at Faith. "I thought you were taking a nap anyway. You have to work in a few hours."

"You know I can't sleep without you next to me."

Buffy chuckled lightly as she placed a hand over Faith's. "I know that's not true. You can fall asleep anywhere, especially when I start talking about my classes."

Faith laughed, placing a light kiss on her neck. "So lay down with me and start talking about your classes. I'll fall asleep in no time."

"Faith . . ."

"Come on, B. Stop working on your paper and chill with me for a couple hours. Once we get up and I go to work you can finish it and I'm sure it'll be so wicked that you'll get an A."

Buffy laughed as Faith turned her chair so they were face to face. "Actually, all I'm going for with this one is to not fail."

Faith's first response was to give her a soft kiss then placed a hand gently against her cheek. "Don't sell yourself short, B. You're the smart one here."

Buffy wanted to say something else, mostly to tell her that she was smarter than she claimed, but she was being kissed again and it was more insistent this time. At the same time, Faith was pulling her up so they were standing. Her arms moved on instinct by then, wrapping them around Faith tightly.

"Why are you so good at distracting me?" Buffy asked with a small smile on her face as they broke away from each other.

"I'm just that good." Faith winked at her and showed off the dimples Buffy found adorable. The other slayer hated when she said that but it was true. "So?"

Buffy sighed. "Fine but as soon as we wake up I have to start working on my paper again. No before work sex."

Faith's face fell just the smallest bit before she perked up again. "Whatever you want, B."

"I mean it, Faith."

"I know, I know. I'll keep my hands to myself." Faith took a step back and raised her hands in mock surrender.

Laughing at the look on Faith's face, Buffy took a step forward and put her arms around her again. "Not completely to yourself, I hope."

"That's my girl," Faith said before beginning to walk them the short distance to their bedroom.

Once inside the room, they quietly laid down and Faith reached over to the alarm clock. She had been late for work enough times that being on time for her shift later was a must. As soon as she was done with that though the two of them crawled under the blankets and cuddled together in the middle of the bed.

"See, I'll sleep now," Faith mumbled contently.

"Uh-huh."

"Love ya, B."

"Love you, too."

Buffy's eyes popped open but she didn't jump out of bed. She wasn't shocked. She'd had enough of the dreams by now that she didn't get shocked just by having them.

The one thing different about this one was Faith had told her she loved her and she had said it back. That was a first as far as the dreams went though from the sound of things, it was definitely not the first time for the dream versions of her and Faith. It sounded like they were a very much in love couple.

Buffy sighed and looked up at the ceiling. The dreams were getting more and more domestic and she wondered how much more they could get. They'd dated, had lots and lots of sex and moved in together. She'd seen sides of Faith she'd never thought possible. Sure, Faith had been changing in real life, too, but it wasn't like the dreams. She loved Buffy in her dreams.

What was next? They were already a happy couple. Were they going to get married or have a family? Buffy didn't know how her brain would take that but she couldn't help but smile at the thought of Faith using baby-talk or changing diapers.

She quickly shook the thought from her head, not liking that the thought made her happy in any way. Buffy didn't want that to make her happy. She didn't want Faith in that way. The only thing she wanted from the other slayer was friendship. Just a simple, easy friendship.

Now she only needed to convince her brain that's all she wanted.

* * *

Buffy and Faith each grabbed a vampire as they strayed away from a recruitment meeting, making sure they weren't noticed by any of the other vamps that were walking in other directions. Since all of them were more preoccupied with what they just agreed to do for Devon, something the two slayers hadn't been able to hear, no one paid any attention as the pair of vamps were thrown into a secluded area.

"Hi, boys," Buffy said cheerily, "whatcha doing?"

"Slayers," the vamp Buffy had pinned against a tree spit out. "I ain't saying nothing."

"Are you sure?" Buffy looked at Faith, who was staring down the vamp she had pinned a few feet away. "I think you look like a talker."

"Your days are numbered," the other one said. "We're all gonna take you out."

"Looks like you're doing a great job so far," Faith said before delivering a quick punch, breaking the vamp's nose. "Where's the group you just joined? Think they're gonna take me out before I stake your ass?"

Buffy watched the vamp squirm as the blood poured out of his nose before looking back at hers. "I don't have a problem with doing the same to you. What did you just join?"

She waited a moment but the vampire didn't respond. He only looked at her defiantly, like he really thought he'd be saved if he towed the line and did exactly what he was told by the recruiters. Buffy turned her head slightly toward Faith and saw her give her a quick nod. With that, she gave him the hardest punch she could, breaking his jaw and sending a couple teeth flying out of his mouth.

"That's the next punch I'm gonna use on you," Faith said. "I bet I wouldn't even have to hit you that hard to make you cry like a little girl."

"Fuck you."

"Not a chance." Faith looked over at Buffy and grinned. "How many chances you wanna give these two, B?"

"Last chance." Buffy stared at the vamp hard. "What did those two tell you to do?"

"I'm still not saying nothing and you're gonna die real soon," was all the vamp said.

Buffy looked at Faith and shrugged before grabbing her stake and swiftly staking him. She looked away in disgust as the dust fell on and around her and she tried her best not to breathe any of it in. Vamp dust was gross enough without breathing it in.

"Do you want the same thing to happen to you?" Faith asked the vamp she was holding.

His demeanor changed and he was suddenly panicking, his eyes darting around, maybe looking to see if any of his new buddies would come to his rescue. "All they wanted me to do was go to a warehouse and help guard it."

"What warehouse?" Buffy asked.

"I'm not good at directions," he said then grunted in pain as Faith punched him in his side. "Okay, okay! It's on rundown side of town, where all the old warehouses are. It's an old three story building with blacked out windows."

Faith didn't say anything else to the vamp, only grinned as she staked him then looked at Buffy and groaned. "Vamps are fucking stupid!"

"Of course they are, Faith," Buffy said as they walked out of the cemetery. "Would you really want them to be smart?"

"True," Faith admitted. "I guess one manipulative asshole vamp is enough. Can you really believe the rest of them are buying this crap? They're doing his bidding and none of 'em have even met them."

"His lieutenants promise that humans will be enslaved and they'll be able to be a part of it." Buffy looked over at Faith with a raised eyebrow. "What vamp wouldn't go for that?"

Faith nodded. "Wish this Devon would at least show his face so we could know what he looks like and, ya know, stake him."

"He's gotta have to turn up at some point, right?" Buffy shrugged. "Maybe he's at that warehouse 'cause we're running out of places to look for him."

"I don't know. I really doubt he's staying in one place." Faith stopped and stood in front of Buffy so she'd stop, too. "You know what? Screw this. We're not gonna find anything else out tonight and I don't wanna be in another 'what can Devon do for you' meeting. Let's ditch this and go to the Bronze."

"How come I always get crap for leaving early but whenever I do stick around you wanna stop early and do something else?" Buffy asked. "I think you want me to look bad in front of Giles."

Faith smirked as she turned and walked away from the cemetery. "Maybe that's not hard to do."

Buffy looked away as Faith winked at her. Whenever she did that her mind immediately went to one of her dreams, this time a recent one where the two of them were in a cemetery doing more than just slaying. She tried her best to push the thought away since it really wasn't helping her at this point. They were getting along so well the entire night and she didn't want that to change by her starting to act awkward.

"So what do you say, B?" Faith walked backwards in front of Buffy, grinning. "We Bronzing it or what? Figure this is something we could actually agree on."

With that comment, Buffy knew she couldn't say no. She knew Faith was trying to keep building on their friendship. The other slayer only suggested the Bronze if she wanted to dance or if she was trying to get Buffy to hang out. Other times, she just wanted a drink or maybe hook up and Buffy didn't want any part of that.

"Sounds like a plan," Buffy said with a nod.

"Let's motor then, B."

Faith's grin was proof to Buffy that she wanted to hang out tonight since it didn't look like she was in the mood to dance. That was usually on nights where they'd staked more than their normal share of vamps and she'd need to let loose a little. Tonight was definitely not one of those nights. There had only been the pair they'd staked after the end of meeting they'd had to listen to yet again. The recruiting vampires always said the same thing so both Faith and Buffy almost knew their script word for word since they had stumbled across one or two a night for the last week.

Buffy smiled and followed Faith's lead toward the Bronze, laughing as Faith leaped over a bench on the way. Since they were already near the rundown section of Sunnydale they didn't have far to walk and therefore didn't talk much. That didn't matter though; it was finally a comfortable silence.

Once they got there, Faith went to the bar to get drinks while Buffy looked around for Willow and Oz. Her best friend had mentioned earlier in the day that they were planning on hanging out there tonight and Buffy figured it was easier to do the friend-bonding thing with Faith in a group. It was harder for her mind to wander into dangerous dream territory that way.

It took a few minutes but she found them in a booth in a corner, watching the band. It wasn't until Buffy was a few feet away that both of them looked away from the stage and saw her.

"Buffy," Willow said as a break came in the music, "isn't it kinda early for an appearance at the Bronze?"

"Yeah," Buffy answered as she sat down opposite them. "Faith and I found another one of those recruitment meetings. We listened until the end, grabbed a couple of stranglers to try and get some info then staked 'em. After that, Faith suggested we bail and come here."

"And where is Faith?"

"Someone just say my name?" Faith asked, smirking as she handed Buffy a drink and sat next to her.

"Just talking about our eventful night."

"Stupid vamps." Faith shook her head in disgust. "I can't believe they show up at these things much less sign up and do this Devon's dirty work."

Oz smiled and leaned forward. "It sounds like a vamp pyramid scheme."

Faith laughed. "Sounds about right. Except for the enslaving humans and taking over the hellmouth stuff."

The group laughed a little at that and sipped their drinks. Buffy felt relaxed for a minute before she realized how close Faith was to her, how much it looked like she was on a double date. She tried to shake the thought, trying to tell herself she was overreacting, but then Faith put her arm around her as she began to talk to Willow and Oz. The thoughts of her dreams and of Faith came rushing back.

"Hey, Buffy, you okay?"

"Yeah, Will." Buffy smiled as she was brought back to reality. "Just drifted off, I guess."

Willow opened her mouth to say something else but the music started again and all of them turned to the band. They listened to the music of a few minutes, not saying anything. Faith kept her arm around Buffy and she had to admit to herself that she didn't hate it. Sure, it was a little uncomfortable given what she and Faith did in her dreams many nights but she definitely didn't hate it.

"Oz," Faith said when there was a lull in the song, "why aren't you playing?"

"We play tomorrow."

Faith shook her head. "Should be tonight. These guys suck."

She said the last part loudly just as the music stopped, causing some of the people on the dance floor to look their way. Buffy, Willow and Oz looked away while Faith simply looked right back as if to prove she meant what she said. The band started their next song then and everyone turned their attention away from the booth.

Buffy couldn't stop the laugh that came out as Faith looked to them again. "Smooth, Faith. Very smooth."

"What? They do." Faith smiled as the others also laughed quietly. "You can't even dance to it."

"There are people dancing," Willow pointed out.

"They're swaying to crappy music." Faith looked to Oz. "Wolfman, help me out. Ruling?"

Oz scanned the crowd. "Dancing is relative. I'm sure they think they're dancing."

Faith looked disgruntled that the fact she couldn't prove her point to the rest of them and they all laughed at the look. Buffy took a sip of her drink and looked around. It was one of the Bronze's calmer nights and she knew Faith hated it, always wanting the Bronze to be busy and full of action. She started silently counting down the minutes until she got bored and left.

The minutes went by though and Faith didn't leave. She hung out with them instead, something she rarely did. The gang and Faith had tiptoed around each other after the accidental stabbing but everyone had slowly got back to where they had been. Willow still had a tendency to be nervous around her but she was before, too. Xander was on his road trip but before he left he seemed comfortable around Faith again. Oz seemed to enjoy talking to Faith now though and Buffy enjoyed listening to their back and forth.

"Have you two narrowed down where Devon is yet?"

Buffy shrugged as she looked at Willow. "One of the vamps we grabbed at the end of the meeting tonight said something about a warehouse but it's not like we know he was telling the truth."

"Vamps aren't exactly known for honesty," Willow said.

"Unless he's been at every meeting we've been to and hasn't ever identified himself to anyone," Faith said almost absently as she looked around the club.

A light bulb went off somewhere in Buffy's brain and she looked at Faith with a raised eyebrow, hoping she was thinking exactly what she was. Faith met her eyes and only stared at her for a few seconds before her own eyes went a little wide.

"He could've been there the entire time and we wouldn't know 'cause we don't know what he looks like."

Buffy nodded. "He could be in the crowd or with all those 'recruiters' and we would've never known."

Faith shook her head. "We've been going at this all wrong, B."

"Yeah," Buffy agreed, "if he's hiding in plain sight, that's where we've got to look for him."

* * *

It had been a fun night and even though they usually went home at different times, tonight when Buffy decided it was time to go home Faith had said the same thing. She wasn't sure if it was a coincidence or not but they left the Bronze together and began walking in the direction of Buffy's house.

"How do we explain all this to Giles tomorrow?"

Buffy shrugged as she looked to the ground then down the street. "He's gonna want to know how we came up with our theory but we don't have anything else to go on. There's no way he can tell us not to go with it."

"So he'll go with a slayer gut feeling?"

"He will if we don't take no for an answer."

Faith laughed quietly but didn't say anything else as they walked. They passed the turn Faith would need to take to go back to Giles' place without so much as a pause and Buffy decided not to point it out. The night had gone so well and she was actually enjoying Faith's company. Talking with her for the amount of time it took to reach her house was okay with her.

"Why did you stick around for so long tonight?" Buffy asked, curious at the unusual behavior. "Normally, you only go to the Bronze to dance and you didn't do that tonight."

"Tracking my habits, huh?" Faith raised an eyebrow but then smirked and laughed. "Nah, couldn't dance to that crappy band. I had nothing else going so I kinda thought I'd just hang with the gang. Figured that was okay."

"Of course it is," Buffy said quickly. "You're one of the gang, too."

"Yeah," Faith said but didn't say anything else causing Buffy to suspect she really didn't believe her.

"You and Oz seem to get along real well," she said instead, only slightly changing the subject.

"We get each other." Faith looked to her and smiled. "He doesn't say much but he's pretty funny, you know? Good fit for Red, too."

"I like to think so."

Neither of them said anything for a minute, both of them still listening to their surroundings. Even though they weren't on patrol Buffy knew they never really stopped once the sun went down. Sure, their main job was to patrol the cemeteries since they were a hotspot for vampires and demons but that didn't stop one of them from venturing into a neighborhood. There had been a few times a vamp had come after her on her way home.

After another couple of minutes they reached Buffy's house and they walked right up to the front door where they stopped. Buffy wasn't sure what to do next. She wasn't sure if Faith wanted to continue to hang out or if she really was only trying to make sure this new threat wouldn't try to make a move while they were doing something as simple as walking home.

The pair turned and looked at each other. Buffy looked into Faith's eyes and if she didn't know better she could swear Faith was going to kiss her. The thought entered her head because she'd seen the look on Faith's face before. She saw it in almost every dream she had.

"Uh," Buffy started, trying to get the connection out of her mind, "I should probably get some sleep."

Faith blinked multiple times and the look disappeared. "Yeah, I have an early shift tomorrow."

"How early?"

"I probably can get like three hours of sleep before I have to show up." Faith smirked as she said it, causing Buffy to laugh quietly.

"So I'll be telling Giles tomorrow?"

"I think you'll be able to convince him we're right. I believe in ya, B."

Buffy shook her head. "Fine, but when you get back we're gonna have to find out if that warehouse exists."

"You got it, B," Faith said as she began to step away from her. "Later."

"See you tomorrow," Buffy said as she watched Faith walk away.

After a minute she walked inside the house and shut the door behind her. The interaction she just had, the look she'd just seen, confused her in a way she couldn't describe. It didn't seem possible but maybe what Willow had been telling her all these weeks had been right.

Maybe Faith was actually having the same dreams.

TBC…


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter Six

* * *

Just like Buffy had suspected, Giles was okay with her and Faith going to investigate the warehouse that may or may not be important. They had been researching for days without getting any payoff so it was an easy decision to do some recon in the seedier area of Sunnydale.

Buffy ended up waking up later than she wanted and quickly realized that Faith had probably been working for a few hours already. It made her feel a little guilty that she didn't have to do anything like that but she knew that Faith wouldn't complain about it. She knew all she was thinking about was the day she had her own place.

She went for a quick run then walked to the gallery to talk to her mother about some of the things she would need to get before she moved into the dorms. Joyce had been busy so the talk was short but Buffy left feeling a little better about being prepared for college.

By the time she left it was almost noon and she figured Faith must have been done with her shift by now so she began walking toward Giles'. It would be better for them to do their recon work in the middle of the day. No one would probably pay any attention to them and if it was a vampire hideout, all of them would be inside and unaware they were checking the place out.

"Hey, B!"

Buffy looked out and saw Faith was walking toward her. Her eyes automatically roamed her body, noticing the jeans and tank top that hugged her curves just right and was suddenly thankful she was wearing sunglasses.

"Hey," she said as Faith met her, "I was just going to see if you were ready to check out this mystery warehouse."

"Sounds like a plan," Faith said with a grin on her face. "I think I might even know where it is."

"What do you mean?"

"What I mean is I work in a warehouse." Faith kept her grin as they began to walk together. "A warehouse that near several other warehouses. I mean, I work in a better area but the rundown and abandoned ones aren't far away."

"Good and bad areas are never really far away from each other in Sunnydale, are they?"

"Nope."

They walked in silence as they walked out of the residential neighborhoods and toward the downtown shops and businesses. It was a perfect sunny day so there were people everywhere, shopping or eating at some of the local cafes. Buffy almost wished she sit back and waste away the day like some of the people seemed to be doing but the work of a slayer never seemed to be done.

"You wanna grab some lunch?"

"Don't we have to find the warehouse?"

Faith shrugged. "It's not like the sun's gonna set soon. We have plenty of time and I'm starving. Did you already eat?"

Buffy shook her head. "Guess I wasn't thinking about it."

"Sometimes I can't believe you're a slayer," Faith commented, laughing. "I'm always hungry."

"I think that's a Faith thing, not a slayer thing." Buffy looked at her and smirked. "Do you have somewhere in mind?"

She nodded her head toward the end of the block. "Come on."

Buffy smiled and followed Faith to a diner that was a little more rundown than the cafes they had passed. When she walked in behind Faith she took off her sunglasses, noticed booths and counters that looked like they'd seen better days and she almost wanted to ask if this was really the place they would be eating at. It didn't look very sanitary.

"Faith," the waitress behind the counter said as she as she saw them walk in, "I can't believe I'm seeing you without that uniform on."

Faith grinned. "Already worked today, Sara. Just stopping in with a friend."

"Take a seat. I'll be there in a minute."

They sat in a booth and Buffy raised an eyebrow. "So people know you here?"

"Kinda." Faith shrugged. "I come here a lot when I have to work odd hours. It's the only decent place that dares to be open 24 hours. Doesn't ever get attacked."

"How's that?"

"Demon owns the place," Faith answered. "Don't worry, I checked him out when I found out. Decent enough, doesn't attack humans and he's big as shit so vamps never come in here to try and make a meal out of a waitress or something. I think they're afraid of him."

Buffy sat back in her seat and looked toward the kitchen. "He's not back there cooking, is he?"

Faith shook her head. "He's the night guy. He's all right, B."

Buffy was about to respond but the waitress suddenly appeared and seemed to look her over before looking at Faith. "So what brings you in today if you're not working?"

"Stuff for the other job," Faith said and winked. "Thought we'd get some food first."

She laughed and turned to Buffy. "You must be Buffy then. Faith's said lots about you."

"She has?" Buffy raised an eyebrow again and could've sworn Faith was fighting a blush.

"Uh, maybe we should order," Faith said quickly. "B, the cheeseburgers are real good here."

"Sounds good to me."

The waitress smiled. "I'll just get ya what Faith always gets."

Buffy waited for her to leave before leaning across the booth toward Faith. "Okay, my brain is overloaded with questions right now. The biggest being, does she know about the slaying?"

"We get to talking sometimes, you know? It's not like she's gonna run to the press or the cops or anything about it. Her boss is a demon, B. I think she's okay with the not so normal."

"Still doesn't mean you can go ahead and tell everyone what we do. I know Giles didn't even like that Willow and Xander knew at first."

Faith shook her head. "B, the first night I walked in here I saw a demon through the doors in the kitchen and freaked a little. I damn near jumped the counter to take him down but he knew who I was and was very quick at explaining himself. We have an understanding now. On the nights we're not patrolling together or when I'm walking home I make sure the place is okay just in case there's something stupid enough to try and wreck up the place. He makes sure I eat for free."

"Okay, and how does the waitress know a lot about me?"

"Sara keeps me company while I eat and we talk," Faith said. "You are the person I spend the most time with. Your name is bound to come up."

Buffy noticed that Faith was beginning to look uncomfortable now that the questions were about that she was talking about Buffy so she decided to let it go. Not only did it look like Faith didn't want to answer but a part of her didn't want to know why either. It could venture into dream-like territory and that wasn't what she wanted. She was already starting to feel that Faith might know about the dreams. That was all she could handle at the moment.

"Fine . . . so how good is the food here?"

* * *

"I think this is it."

Buffy and Faith stood in front of an old, three story brick warehouse on a street that looked to be abandoned. They hadn't met a single person the last two blocks they had walked and Buffy wouldn't have been surprised to see a tumbleweed blow by at this point. It felt as though people knew to stay away from the area.

"All the windows are even blacked out like the vamp said," Faith commented.

"Think it's condemned, too?"

"Safe bet."

Buffy walked a few steps toward the side of the building. "The front doors are boarded up so they must getting in through the side or back doors."

"Probably only one of 'em though. Can't run an operation like this without having control of how people get in and get out." Faith looked up and down the street. "Even in the daylight this street is creepy."

"Your senses on high alert, too?"

"Big time."

They walked down the alleyway between warehouses, trying to find the entrance to the warehouse that they were sure was Devon's hideout. At the back of the building, near the dumpsters that were overflowing and looked as though they hadn't been switched out in months was a jumbled stack of boxes and grates that looked like they were thrown there on purpose. It looked like there was a door behind them.

Buffy and Faith looked at each other and Faith smiled. "They make it so obvious, don't they?"

"It's like they want to get staked," Buffy said as they walked over to the stack.

It only took a minute and a couple of moved boxes to see the entrance and the reasons the boxes were there in the first place. The door was new, secure and looked very out of place being attached to a warehouse that was close to falling apart.

"Don't think we should bust in there and just start staking, do you?"

"Nah," Faith said. "Then I might get vamp dust all over these clothes and I might lose my sunglasses. I just bought these, B."

Buffy laughed. "Fine. I don't think we're exactly prepared anyway."

Faith nodded and they looked over the back of the warehouse more. Unlike the front, the back looked to be well traveled. There were tracks everywhere but what Buffy found curious was that there wasn't just shoeprints. It looked like there might be some prints that weren't of the human variety as well.

"This is weird, Faith. I think there are demons here, too."

"We never saw demons being recruited. Just vamps."

"Yeah, but look down. These tracks aren't from vamps or humans." Buffy pointed to a few as Faith stopped at her side and looked. "See?"

"Guess vamps and demons play together now," she said then looked at Buffy. "Just fucking fantastic."

Buffy looked up, trying to see if there was any way someone from inside the warehouse could see that they were investigating the door. Vampires couldn't walk outside to confront them but demons could and there wasn't a single person around that could see them. The thought made Buffy more uneasy than she would care to admit.

"We should circle the place, see if there's anything else unusual," Faith said. "That way when we come back here tonight we won't be surprised."

"So we're coming back here tonight?"

"Why not?" Faith asked. "If we know this is a place where all the planning and action is happening then this is where we have to be. I'm not spending another night tracking recruiters when we have a good idea that this is where they are."

Buffy sighed. "We better come prepared then. From the feeling I'm getting this place is gonna be crawling with vampires after the sun goes down."

"Better get to it then."

* * *

The rest of the afternoon was spent planning with Giles and trying to come up with a way for them to check out the warehouse without being in any unnecessary danger. They had walked around the entire building and the only working entrance was to the door they had found. Every other area had been boarded up or bolted shut.

One thing Faith noticed that both of them found a little curious was that there was sewer access close by. In fact, several of the tracks they saw only went from the entrance to the sewer. They thought there might even be an access point inside the warehouse as well. It definitely would be a desired feature of a building for a vampire that needed tunnels and sewers to get around during the day.

The pair separated for a few hours so Faith could take a much needed nap and Buffy went home to have dinner with her mother. The afternoon had gone so well that she almost wanted to ask Faith if she wanted to come over for dinner but she could see how tired the other girl was so she decided against it. It felt like tonight would be a very long night and it would be better if they were both rested. Who knew what they were going to encounter inside the warehouse.

"Why didn't Faith come over for dinner tonight?" Joyce asked as they cleaned up.

"She needed some sleep before patrol," Buffy answered as the doorbell rang. "But maybe she thinks she can still catch the end of it."

Her mother laughed as Buffy walked out of the kitchen to the front door, opening it to find Faith standing there. She had on her leathers and a tight tank top underneath her leather jacket. Buffy liked that she looked more rested, too. A better rested Faith meant better backup for her.

"Hey, I thought we were meeting up in a little bit," Buffy said.

Faith shrugged. "I woke up and got ready. Didn't really think about the time since it's getting dark. By the time we get there I bet there's gonna be a lot going on."

"You got weapons?"

"Couple of stakes, a knife," Faith answered. "You got more though, right?"

Buffy nodded. "Yeah, let me grab some stuff and we'll go."

She ran upstairs quick and rummaged through her weapons chest, grabbing a couple stakes of her own and some other handy weapons before walking back down to meet Faith. Of course, she found her in the kitchen eating some leftovers.

"B, if I knew you'd be having chicken tonight I would've stopped over earlier."

"Funny," Buffy said quietly. "Come on, let's go."

They said their goodbyes to Buffy's mother and began their walk to the warehouse. Neither of them said anything as they walked, maybe not having anything to say to each other. Buffy was busy hoping that they wouldn't get into too much trouble tonight. She wanted to find Devon and end whatever it was that he was doing but she didn't want the two of them to get in over their heads. At the end of the night she wanted them to be very much of the living.

When they were within a block of the warehouse Buffy could already begin to hear voices coming from it. All the surrounding buildings were just as dead and dark as they had been during the day but their warehouse was the exact opposite. They could already see vamps walking around outside.

Faith grabbed Buffy by the arm and pulled them out of view of the street. "Here, B," Faith said as she handed her a black stocking cap. "I think we gotta blend in a little more."

"So we look like bank robbers?"

"No, so we look less like us," Faith clarified. "Remember, we can't really sneak in. We're just gonna have to try and disguise ourselves a little."

Buffy knew she was right so she put the hat, adjusting it as best she could before walking back onto the street with Faith. She noticed that there were only a couple of vampires outside the warehouse now and most of the voices and yells were coming from inside.

"It looks like the few outside are guarding the place," Buffy whispered to Faith. "If we just stake them we might be able to walk right in."

"Let's do it." Faith began to walk faster, keeping to the shadows, and Buffy followed her.

The first pair of vamps that were sitting at the front of the building were no problem. They were drunk and so distracted in the conversation they were having that neither slayer even had to throw a punch before staking them. Buffy only hoped the rest of the night went as smoothly but by the sounds of that were coming from inside, they may be up against a few dozen vampires and who knows what else.

As they walked around the corner of the building, they noticed there were three vampires hovering around the entrance. The two of them shared a look and Faith nodded that she was ready to go. Buffy was very relieved she didn't just break out in a run toward the trio, something she might have done a few months ago. That would have caused unnecessary attention and they really needed to get into the warehouse without being detected.

Thankfully, the vamps doing the guarding weren't doing a very good job. They were talking and looking away from the entrance of the alleyway as Buffy and Faith were casually walking down. Once they were about ten feet from them the pair shared a look and Buffy made a sign that they should stay silent. Any of the quips they loved to say would ruin the element of surprise they wanted.

They first staked the two facing away from them in the back, something neither of them liked doing but it was necessary for the situation. The third vamp began to panic immediately but Faith jumped the bench the vamp she'd just staked had been standing in front of and tackled him, staking him before they hit the ground.

"You okay?" Buffy whispered as she helped Faith up.

Faith stood and dusted herself off quickly. "Yeah. Let's go in there now before they realize all the guards are dust."

Buffy nodded and they cautiously entered walked through the open door. She looked around as she did and noticed all the boxes that had covered the door during the day were stacked neatly off to the side. The manhole covering the sewer access was also gone.

The inside of the warehouse was wide open. Aside from the pillars scattered throughout the area there wasn't much there aside from the vampires walking around and talking. There were boxes packed with what looked like supplies and maybe a few weapons but other than that there was nothing. It made Buffy wonder if it had always been that way or if Devon and his cronies had cleared everything out on purpose.

No one seemed to notice their presence as they walked inside even though there were more vamps than they could take on with just the two of them. If they were discovered they would have no choice but to run.

"Faith," Buffy whispered as she pulled at her arm, "let's stick to the back. There's too many here."

Faith nodded but didn't say anything. Her eyes were constantly moving around the room and it looked like she was counting how many vamps were there. Buffy looked around and noticed toward the front of the room were a trio of vampires in suits and behind them were two large, dark green demons.

"B, those big guys in the front are the same kind of demon as the one who owns the diner," Faith whispered.

"Is one of them the one you know?"

Faith shook her head. "No, but you better believe I'm paying him a visit after we leave."

"Everyone shut up!"

The whole place immediately became silent and they turned to the front of the room. The three suited vampires now stood on a table, making sure they were able to look down at the rest of the vamps. Buffy noticed how they stood with confidence and that a demon stood on either side of the table, like they were ready to beat down anyone who would dare try to act out while the three were speaking.

"We're very happy to see so many of you have made the right choice in joining us," the vamp in the center said. "The ones who have not are now your enemy. Look around! This is your family now."

The vamps began to cheer and it looked like some of them were drunk. Buffy wondered if the fact her and Faith weren't cheering would make them easier to pick out of the crowd but they trio began to speak again so she didn't have time to consider it further.

"The time has come for you to meet the one responsible for you being here. The one who will bring us a new age where vampires are in power and humans are nothing but slaves and food!" He paused as the crowd began to cheer again but they silenced immediately when he put his hand up. "It is my pleasure to introduce our leader!"

His voice doomed and suddenly a vampire from the crowd jumped up on the table and the trio immediately stepped down like they knew their place. His hair was short, dark and spiky and he wore a loose-fitting, eighties-style suit. Buffy almost laughed because of how clichéd he looked and when she looked at Faith she could tell she was thinking the same thing.

"Who's ready to take control?" he yelled. "Who's ready to do what they want, to whoever they want?"

The crowd yelled out their wish to do just that and it was easy to see that Devon loved any second of it. He'd only said two sentences and he already had complete control of the crowd.

"It's time to do that, boys and girls," Devon said once the crowd began to calm. "There is no reason for us to live as second-class citizens to humans. They are weak! We should be in control and they should be nothing more than a food source."

Buffy and Faith looked at each other then and Buffy could tell Faith wanted to yell something back badly. Instead, she only rolled her eyes and turned back to Devon. Buffy quickly looked around to make sure they hadn't been spotted then did the same.

"It's gonna take a little work first. We have big plans here and everyone needs to do their part."

"What do we do?" a vamp in the crowd asked.

Devon looked like he didn't like to be questioned but he quickly hid the displeasure on his face. "We are going to open the hellmouth." He paused. "And we need the slayers to make that happen. Not to kill though, not right away. They have something I need."

The crowd started to talk amongst themselves and Devon did not look pleased that he was starting to lose the crowd. That was when Buffy could swear he looked right at her. She tried not to make any sudden movements for fear she would cause attention to her or Faith. Even with that, she tugged on Faith's arm discreetly to get her attention.

"Stay alert, Faith," she whispered under her breath, knowing her slayer hearing could pick up on it but the others around them probably wouldn't.

"What I need is for all of you is to make sure the slayers know they have targets on their backs," he said as a grin formed on his face, "but I think they know."

"Oh, shit," Faith muttered.

"The slayers have decided to grace us with their presence tonight," Devon boomed and many of the vampires followed his stare to Buffy and Faith.

"Faith . . ."

"B . . ."

"What are you all waiting for? Get them!"

Buffy took Faith's hand quickly. "Run!"

* * *

Not liking their chances with running through the streets, Faith had chosen to jump down into the sewer and Buffy had no choice but to follow her. They had been running for about 10 minutes before Buffy knew for sure that they were completely lost and stopped in frustration. It took a few seconds for Faith to realize she'd stopped before stopping herself and walking back.

"What are you doing?"

Buffy tried her best not to look disgusted as she looked Faith over but she was sure she looked just as bad, the unfortunate result of running through the sewers. She threw her hand up, gesturing in the air around them. "I don't hear them anymore . . . maybe they're just as lost as we are."

"Nah, they're not lost," Faith said as she looked around. "They might not know where we are anymore but they probably know the sewers and tunnels way better than we do. I bet they know we're gonna get lost and decided to either find us another way or have moved on to something else."

"Sure." Buffy's tone wasn't very convincing as she looked around. All everything looked the same to her as they had run and she had no idea how to get out. She couldn't even remember the last time she'd seen a ladder that went to the surface. "We need to find a way out."

Faith's eyes roamed her body quickly and Buffy suddenly felt very self-conscious. "You okay, B? Not injured or anything?"

She reached out and touched Buffy's shoulder, causing her muscles to stiffen briefly and she had to fight the urge to back away. All it seemed to take was one touch from Faith and she had a flash of one of her dreams. This thing she flashed to one where she'd come home to her apartment, their apartment, to find Faith waiting with a candlelit dinner and flowers everywhere. They didn't end up making it to dinner.

The sex parts of the dreams didn't faze Buffy anymore. As much as they put her on edge they showed a side of Faith she expected. That Faith was all sex and passion and everything was hard and intense. It was the caring, sensitive, loving Faith that haunted her. The thought that she was capable of such things scared her. She wasn't completely sure why but it scared her to thing Faith would ever care for her that way.

Their eyes met for a split second then before Buffy blushed and looked away. Faith looked down and took a couple steps back as well.

"The dreams are really gettin' to you, huh?"

Buffy's head shot up and she looked at Faith, who was still looking away from her. "You know? Who told you? Was it Will? Damn her!"

"Wasn't Willow," Faith said quietly. "You told her but not me?"

"I needed to talk to someone . . ." Buffy stopped, eyes widened. "If no one told you, how do you know?"

Faith finally looked at her and Buffy couldn't read the expression on her face. She'd never seen it before. "Were you the only one there, B?"

Buffy's jaw dropped slightly and she had no idea what to say. Faith was really in the dreams with her and she hadn't said anything. That made her breathe a little sigh of relief because now she couldn't be the only one going insane. Now she figured it had to be a spell or something that was making her dream what she was dreaming. It was the only option that made sense.

"Shit, B, not even a comeback? Nothing?"

"Why didn't you say anything?"

Faith's only response was to shrug but Buffy knew there was more to it. Maybe she felt the same as her: that the dreams were slowly driving her insane. That was the only way Buffy could describe it and hoped that if Faith felt that, too, maybe they could figure out what was going on. It could have even been a weapon Devon was using after all. It seemed like something he might think up given what they saw of him earlier.

"Faith, if I knew all this earlier we could've found a way to stop them," Buffy said. "Hell, if Devon's doing this . . ."

"That's what you think is happening?" Faith cut in quickly, her eyes only meeting Buffy's for a second at a time before darting away.

"But then what . . ." Buffy started but trailed off as her mind began to more quickly. Willow was right about Faith having the dreams, too, but Buffy was sure they were a result of a spell. The only other possibility was that they were slayer dreams and she doubted she'd be having so much sex in dreams that were supposed to help her with slayer-related events. Outside of that, the only explanation left was . . .

"They're yours?"

Faith looked away from her and Buffy's mouth dropped. She wasn't sure what shocked her more: that Faith had been having sex dreams about her for weeks or that she'd been able to visit them. It was all so unbelievable to her. Could Faith be interested in her? Before today Buffy would have laughed off the question but not now. There had been too many relationship-type dreams for her to laugh it off.

Buffy walked up to Faith and carefully put a hand on her shoulder, thinking it might be the only way to get her to look at her. Thankfully, she did and Buffy tried to show more calm in the look she had. It wasn't easy to do either given how confused she was. "Are they yours?"

"Yeah," Faith answered quietly and Buffy didn't think she'd ever seen her look so uneasy before.

"Am I supposed to be visiting them?"

Faith's eyes widened and Buffy knew she was taking the question as an accusation. "You think I'm making it so you, the real you, is showing up? Nice to know what you really think of me, B."

"That's not what I meant," Buffy quickly corrected. "How long have you been having . . . those dreams?"

"Since you stood up for me." Faith's eyes focused on the ground again, refusing to look at Buffy.

Buffy only became more confused with the answer. "But that was a few months before I started having them. How did you even know it was really me?"

Faith looked at Buffy again and Buffy thought she almost looked a little defeated. "Your eyes. One night there was something different about them and then you couldn't even look at me the next day. After a few times it didn't take a genius to figure out what was going on." She paused. "Then I could always tell when you were there and when you weren't."

"But . . ." Buffy was having a hard time taking it all in. Now she wished she would have talked to Faith long ago. Then everything would have been settled and she'd be able to sleep again. Then again, the questions she'd always had would have remained unanswered and now they were practically screaming at her. "Faith, do you have feelings for me? Sex dreams are one thing but we're together in those dreams."

She dared to put a hand on her arm again as Faith looked at her. The look on her face made Buffy want to give her a hug and she was sure in any other situation she would have. Faith looked scared, maybe even a little panicked, and Buffy figured if they weren't lost she'd probably be running.

"Faith?"

"Yeah," Faith answered quietly as she tried not to look Buffy in the eye. "Think it started as a crush or something but now . . . I really want ya, B."

Their eyes met as Faith spoke and Buffy could tell instantly Faith was finally being honest with her. As she looked into those dark brown eyes she secretly always loved, she could see everything for once. Faith was finally trusting her.

Buffy placed a hand gently on Faith's cheek and almost smiled when her eyes closed at the feel of her touch. She suddenly felt so wanted, completely wanted, and it surprised her how much she liked that the person wanting her was Faith. There was nothing she could say, nothing that could describe what she was feeling, so she slowly leaned in and lightly pressed her lips against Faith's.

Both their bodies froze at the action and Buffy could tell Faith was shocked. It only took a few seconds for her to snap out of it though and soon Buffy felt Faith's arms around her, making sure her body was pressed against hers. Even with that, the kiss remained light until Buffy thought she heard voices and pulled away.

"What's wrong?" Faith asked quietly and Buffy thought there could be a hint of panic in her voice.

"Do you hear something?"

Faith kept her arms around her but looked away, likely listening to the surroundings. Buffy did the same and after a few seconds she heard the faint sound of voices echoing off the walls.

"Hear that?" Buffy asked.

"Yeah," Faith answered, nodding. "We need to get out of here. Last thing we need is them finding us down here."

Buffy nodded. "Except we don't know where we are."

"First ladder going up we see we go up. We both know the town well enough to get to Giles' from wherever we end up." She looked in the direction they had been running toward. "When we get outta here we're definitely continuing whatever we got going here."

Faith let her go and took off before Buffy could respond and she started to run after her a second later. Even with everything that was going on between them Faith was definitely right about one thing: the needed to get out of the sewer.

TBC...


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter Seven

* * *

As Buffy began to wake up, she felt more comfortable than she could ever remember and even if she did, she didn't want to. Nothing, not even her memory, was going to ruin this moment for her. She wanted how she was feeling to be burned into her brain so she would remember it above all else.

She began to realize as she became more aware of her surroundings that she'd been moved during the night. The last thing she'd remembered was Faith moving away from her and falling asleep beside her. The sheets had been kicked to the side during all their activity so she'd fallen asleep naked and uncovered. There'd been a chill in the air but she had been too exhausted to even think of reaching for a sheet or blanket before falling asleep.

That's not how she was waking up. Buffy was all warm and toasty, wrapped in blankets. Instead of Faith simply being next to her, she had her arms around Buffy and Buffy's head was resting on her shoulder. She even had an arm draped around Faith's stomach, too. The position felt so natural but it didn't shock her. It only made her happy.

Since it felt too good to move and she didn't want to wake Faith, Buffy looked over as much of the room as she could without moving. She'd only ever been in the room a couple times and never from her current angle. It was a fairly simple room, sparsely decorated, but Buffy figured Faith wouldn't want to decorate a place she was trying so hard to leave.

One thing she found curious was that it looked like the room had been picked up. From what she could remember, the room wasn't exactly the cleanest room she'd ever seen but now all the clothes were gone from the floor. All the drawers were closed and so was the closet and there was even a pair of jeans and a shirt neatly folded on top of a chair by the door. She wondered of those were meant for her since there was no way she was going to wear her sewage-stained clothes home. She didn't even think she'd ever be able to wear them again.

Buffy smiled when she thought about what happened once they got to Giles' place. Once they'd gotten away from the vamps chasing them they'd gotten back easily and now that Buffy knew all the dreams she'd been having were actually Faith's she didn't look at her the same anymore. There wasn't any way she could now that she knew how Faith felt. Everything was different now.

Nothing is what she thought they would be after they got inside the house either. Buffy knew she was meant to stay and she wanted to so that wasn't very surprising. They started with some kissing and a little groping but they couldn't do much more in the living room. There was too big a chance of Giles catching them.

Then Faith led them up the stairs but she didn't lead them to her room, instead heading for the bathroom. She told Buffy that they needed to get out of their clothes and they definitely needed a shower. Once Buffy looked in the mirror she knew she was right: they were dirty and their clothes were ruined, covered in dirt and splattered with sewage.

They carefully took off each other's clothes and Buffy got her first look at Faith's naked body. It was just as amazing as what she saw in the dreams but it was better because it was real and Faith encouraged her to touch her, to run her hands over her skin. It was beyond any dream.

What surprised her was that there was no sex in the shower. They let their hands explore each other and it felt like they kissed constantly but it didn't get any farther than that. While they were in there it didn't even seem like Faith wanted go beyond the gentle groping they did while washing up. It looked like she was trying her best to restrain herself but that all changed once they got to her bedroom.

Nothing was like she thought it would be in there either. Some of her dreams were beyond hot, everything being hard, fast and intense and they always left her all hot and bothered when she woke up. What she had experience just a few short hours before was hot but it wasn't hard and fast at all. No, it was slow and tender.

After the shower they dried off and wrapped themselves in towels before quickly losing them once they closed and locked Faith's bedroom door. Then Faith began to kiss and touch her everywhere, making her feel things she didn't know were possible. She never imagined someone could make her so turned on yet safe and relaxed at the same time but Faith did just that.

She even let Buffy do some exploring of her own, letting her find all the spots that made Faith have to fight a moan. Buffy knew Faith didn't like to give up control ever so the fact she did even for a short time meant the world to her. It felt like she had Faith's complete trust.

They had had to be quiet because of their watcher being not too far away but Buffy still felt like crying out half the time. The way Faith felt pressed so deliciously against her or the feel of her fingers inside her made her want to cry out. Sometimes all that stopped her was Faith's lips on hers and she really liked that part. Faith was an amazing kisser.

Buffy was a little unsure of what to do but Faith's encouraging words helped her along and that was all she needed in order to make Faith feel as incredible as she did. Faith's hands moved over Buffy's body the entire time she did, too, like she was trying to memorize every inch of it and Buffy tried to do the same. It made the night all the more special.

She let out a contented sigh as she snuggled against Faith and stiffened a little as she felt the other girl move slightly as a response. She looked up and saw a sleepy-looking Faith looking down at her.

"Good morning," she said quietly and shifted Buffy so they could look at each other better. "Sleep okay?"

Buffy nodded slowly as she snuggled to her, feeling like it was natural to do so. She bit back a moan at the feel of Faith's skin against her own and smiled a little as she saw Faith do the same. "I don't remember falling asleep like this."

Faith grinned as she moved her hands over Buffy's back. "I woke up a couple hours after we fell asleep and made sure Giles was asleep and now traumatized by us."

"Probably of the good that he didn't," Buffy whispered as she let out a chuckle. Then a thought popped into her bed and she frowned. "Shit . . . what about my mom?"

"No worries. I called her, said you fell asleep here." Faith winked at her. "Which is kinda true."

Buffy blushed lightly. "I guess so."

"After that, I got our clothes out of the bathroom before they started to stink up the place and tossed them in the wash. I might've just ruined Giles' washer but I had to try. I really love the top I had on but I think my leathers are ruined."

"Maybe we should've tried our luck running above ground."

"It's no big," Faith said, shrugging. "I did get some clothes for you and put it on the chair is case you freaked out when you woke up and wanted to make a quick escape."

"I'm not exactly doing that."

Faith grinned. "I can see that."

She closed the short distance between them and pressed her lips against Buffy's. The kiss was slow and soft, the perfect morning kiss as far as Buffy was concerned. She could tell how much Faith cared about her and how nervous she was in the kiss. Buffy could only try her best to show her she had no reason to be nervous.

When they broke apart Faith lightly nuzzled her nose, causing Buffy to giggle quietly. She was actually seeing the care and gentle side of Faith that she thought would only ever exist in the dreams she'd shared with her. She loved every second of it.

"I'm thrilled you stayed and, ya know, aren't freaking out."

"How could I freak out when you finally told me how you felt," Buffy said. "I figured all those dreams were part of my overactive imagination."

"I love your imagination," Faith said with a smirk, "especially if you think it was imagining lots of sex with me."

Buffy giggled again as Faith tickled her lightly and wondered if that would become something she normally did around Faith. She kind of liked it. "I believe those were your dreams, not mine. I was just visiting."

Faith gave her a light kiss. "I will definitely show you more of my imagination then." She kissed her again. "But I think we have to get up. Giles is an early riser and we don't wanna traumatize him. He'll never stop cleaning his glasses."

"True." Buffy let out a quiet sigh as Faith moved her hands over her. "We probably need to tell him what happened with the vamps and I should get home."

"I kinda don't want you to go," Faith said, looking away as she did like she didn't like that she looked vulnerable.

Buffy smiled, liking that Faith wanted her to stay. The only problem was there was a vampire rapidly trying to take over Sunnydale and they needed to know more about his plan. She knew Giles would be able to help them figure that out since they knew now he wanted to open the hellmouth and maybe they could even come up with a plan to stop him. After that was done, then she could concentrate on the very naked Faith pressed against her right now.

"I kinda don't wanna go."

They kissed lightly again before Buffy found the strength to get out of bed. She walked over to the clothes Faith had set out for her and slowly put them on, feeling Faith's eyes on her the entire time. It probably would've made her a little self-conscious but not now that she knew how Faith felt about her. She had even more evidence of that when she felt Faith's arms around her.

"This can't be a onetime thing, B," she said as she kissed her neck and shoulder. "Not after you know how I feel."

Buffy leaned back into Faith and sighed. "I know. We need to finish this one thing first. We need to stop Devon."

Faith moved away and when Buffy turned around, she saw Faith was putting on clothes as well. They dressed in silence but Buffy kept sneaking peeks at the other girl as she dressed. Even though she'd had her hands all over that body just hours before she couldn't get over how beautiful and incredible Faith's body was. She also couldn't get over how that very same body had made her feel things she'd never felt before.

"I should go," Buffy said softly as she watched Faith pull on a t-shirt. "I'll come back as soon as I check in with my mom and we can discuss our next step with Giles."

Faith ran a hand through her hair and looked at her. "Okay . . . do you want me to walk you home?"

Buffy smiled at the question. She couldn't deny that she loved this side of Faith, who was finally letting her guard down even though it was clear she was nervous about it. Buffy knew she had to do her best to show her there was nothing to be nervous about. She could trust her.

"That's okay, Faith." Buffy walked up to her and put her arms around her. "I'll be back in a few hours." She gave her a light kiss, immediately wishing she could stay if only so she could keep kissing Faith. "I don't regret this."

"Okay," Faith said quietly. "Go home and check in then get back here."

Buffy nodded, smiling. "Everything's gonna work out, Faith. I can feel it."

* * *

There was a smile on Buffy's face all morning and it wasn't going away. Not that she would ever want it to go away. It was the best morning of her life.

After leaving Faith she'd walked home and got a couple hours sleep before showering and having breakfast with her mom. She'd gotten somewhat of a talking to about not calling home herself but that didn't get her down. She knew her mom was only worried about her so she was okay with being lectured about calling to make sure she was okay.

Buffy listened to her mom talk about work while they ate and about a man who was trying to ask her out. She had a little fun at her mother's expense with that information but also made a mental note to check out the guy. If someone was going to date her mom they sure as hell were going to get her approval first.

The conversation then turned to what was going on with the slaying and the vampire she and Faith had been tracking but Buffy tried to not get into too much detail as she talked. Despite Joyce knowing of her daughter's nightly activities Buffy still wanted to protect her from the slaying. She didn't want her to know what she faced each night and she definitely didn't want to put her in harm's way. Once was more than enough.

After they were done eating, Buffy found herself walking back to Giles' place. She was walking at a quick pace, too, and it wasn't just to see Faith. It was also because they finally knew what Devon looked like and just maybe they could get a plan together.

Of course, seeing Faith was the first reason. Everything had changed between them now and it wasn't purely due to the sex that was had. Buffy knew Faith had more than just an attraction to her. Even though they hadn't had a chance to really talk about it, she knew Faith had actual feelings for her. She might even love her.

It was too soon for that though. Buffy feared that Faith would say that she loved her because she didn't know that she could say it back. She hadn't had time to think about what she felt for Faith other than she really liked her. Hopefully, they would be able to talk about it and Faith would be okay with her not completely knowing her feelings.

As she neared the condo she saw Faith sitting on the front step. She looked amazing, her wavy hair hanging over her shoulders and her tight shirt hugging her curves just right. She didn't see Buffy right away but when she looked up she saw her and gave her the smallest of smiles.

Faith stood up as Buffy reached her and they shared an embrace. Buffy took it a step further, lightly pressing her lips against Faith's, but was thrown when Faith didn't return it.

"Faith?" Buffy looked at her as she pulled away. "What's wrong?"

The look on Faith's face didn't make Buffy feel a whole lot better. "When you left I turned to go back into the house and found this."

Buffy looked down at Faith's feet and saw a jagged knife lying on the step. Then her eyes moved up to see a hole in the siding by the door, likely where the knife had been stuck in. Her eyes slowly drifted back to Faith, who looked like she was trying not to show any emotion. There was a note in her hand.

"What's going on?" Buffy took the note from Faith and read it, which didn't take long. It only had four words: I have your friends.

"I tried calling Willow and Oz but I never got an answer," Faith said and Buffy could tell she was trying her best to stay calm. "Xander's not in town so I'm guessing he doesn't have him."

"How . . ."

"I dunno, B," Faith said with a sigh. "Maybe he had someone take 'em last night while we were dealing with the rest of them. Your mom's okay, right?"

Buffy nodded. "I just left her."

"Good." Faith carefully put her arms around her and Buffy could feel her nervousness as she held her. "Giles is inside. I told him I'd meet you out here and tell you myself."

"You really couldn't find Will or Oz?"

Faith shook her head. "I don't think Devon would bluff this one. Come on, we should talk to Giles about finding them."

Buffy only nodded her head and let Faith lead her inside. She kept telling herself over and over that she couldn't panic. What she needed was to get into full slayer mode and not let emotions get the best of her. It would only stall her efforts in finding her friends.

Giles stood up from the couch as they walked in and looked at both of them with a serious expression. "Buffy, good. You're here."

"How could this happen, Giles?"

"A number of things could've happened," he said as they all sat. "What we need to know is why."

"Isn't it obvious?" Buffy said quickly as she looked at the other two. "When we were at the warehouse last night he said he wanted to get to us. This is to get our attention."

"He already had our attention," Faith commented. "Why couldn't he just come for us?"

"Because this makes us vulnerable. Don't you remember what he said, Faith?"

"I know he was doing his best sales pitch which really wasn't necessary 'cause the vamps were already there and they're stupid as shit so they didn't need any more convincing." Faith stopped for a minute and looked down, liking thinking through the events at the warehouse. "He did mention he needed something from us."

Giles' look went from serious to almost curious. "He wants something from you? As in something a slayer would have?"

"Yeah, and he wants to open the hellmouth with whatever we have," Faith added.

"Then he might want your blood to open the hellmouth," Giles said. "Some of the strongest spells use slayer blood. They aren't used often, for obvious reasons."

"I dunno, he never mentioned that he wants our blood," Faith said. "Then again, he didn't talk much before he saw us and I don't think he'd want the masses knowing every detail of his plan anyway."

Buffy put a hand on Faith's arm, making her look at her. "Think about it: is there anything more powerful than a slayer's blood? He's trying to keep the hellmouth plan indefinitely. There's probably a spell out there that will do that."

Faith shrugged. "Wouldn't he just wanna drain us then? Why take Red and Oz? He already had our attention."

"He must need the two of you alive in order to complete his plan and is using Willow and Oz to get you to come to him."

"Well, now we have to go to him," Buffy said. "We need to go to that warehouse and stake everyone there."

"Buffy, we don't know enough to do that," Giles put in quickly. "I have some older texts here and if I remember correctly there is some mention of the uses of slayer blood. We need to try and find out exactly what sort of spell Devon intends on using."

"That's what your plan is? Research?" Buffy asked, knowing she was starting to overreact and panic but couldn't seem to stop. She never liked putting her friends in danger and always felt responsible. "We need to go out there and find them. Who knows what they've done to them!"

"B," Faith started calmly as she placed a gentle hand on her shoulder, "if they want us they need Willow and Oz alive to get us wherever they need us. We need to have a plan and as much info as we can when that happens."

Buffy looked into her eyes and could easily see how much Faith was keeping her anger from bubbling to the surface and was trying to be the strong one. Buffy knew she should be doing the same. Keeping a level head was a must if they were going to rescue their friends.

None of them said anything for a minute. Buffy was trying her best to think of a way to save her friends even though they weren't sure of where they were. They could be at the warehouse but they also didn't know if that was only one of many places Devon used as a hideout. She and Faith had obtained some information the previous night but now it seemed like nowhere near enough.

Giles' phone suddenly rang, causing all of them to jump. Buffy looked to Faith, who shrugged, then to Giles. "Expecting a call?" When he shook his head she reached over and picked up the phone. "Hello?"

"Which slayer am I talking to?"

Buffy's eyes widened as she looked at Faith and mouthed who it was. "Where are my friends?"

A devious laugh came from the other end of the line. "That's not the proper way to address me."

"What do you want me to say? Maybe I should how we're gonna kill you."

"I think we both know that's got gonna happen. Now I'm guessing I'm speaking with Buffy. Am I right?"

Buffy stood up, not being able to sit any longer given how angry she was. Faith stood a moment later and Buffy knew she wanted to make sure she stayed as calm as possible. She wasn't sure how that was possible though. Devon seemed like he was set on pushing her buttons.

"I'm taking your silence as a yes." He paused. "Now I'm sure you want to talk about your three helpless little friends."

"Three?" Buffy furrowed her brow in confusion.

Devon laughed. "We took your two friends outside of that club you and the other one are always at. The third friend was a little harder but we got him coming back into town."

"We are going to stake you and anything who has so much as thought of helping you out."

"So you say, Buffy. So you say." He paused again and Buffy thought he was thoroughly enjoying the conversation. "So it's time I offer you a deal for your friends."

Buffy felt Faith put a hand on her back as she gripped the phone, growing more frustrated at how lightly the vampire was talking to her. "What kind of deal?"

"You know I don't want your friends and we're not exactly thrilled to have a werewolf around. The full moon is approaching." He took another pause. "We don't even want their blood. I know that will only work against us."

"So you're not completely stupid."

"Very funny," he said as he let out a laugh. "What I need is a slayer . . . mostly your blood but I bet you already knew that."

Buffy scoffed. "You know that's not gonna happen."

"Isn't it? Are you saying you wouldn't sacrifice yourself for the sake of your friends? You don't even have to sacrifice yourself, just the other one . . . Faith."

"Go to hell."

"That is part of the plan but I do need some of that blood first." He stopped yet again, maybe thinking Buffy might say something, before continuing. "Here's what's going to happen. You and Faith will come to my warehouse and one of you will be traded for your friends."

"No deal."

"That's the only deal, Buffy, and I'm thinking you'll show. I'm betting I'll see you around midnight."

Buffy opened her mouth to say something but the line went dead and she was left in shock. She couldn't believe what he wanted. She wasn't about to deal with him. All she wanted to do was stake him and any other vampire responsible for kidnapping her friends.

"B? What's going on?" Faith asked as Buffy hung up the phone. "What did he say?"

Buffy sat down and Faith did as well. Giles leaned forward but Buffy couldn't look at either of them. "He has Willow and Oz. Hell, he has Xander, too, and I don't even know how that's possible. He's not supposed to be anywhere near Sunnydale."

"Fuck, he has Xander, too?" Faith ran a hand through her hair. "Devon is so staked."

"Buffy, what does he want for them?"

"You're right, Giles." Buffy lifted her head to look at him. "He wants one of us in return for their release. He said he wants our blood."

"Did he say anything else, B?"

"He wants us at the warehouse at midnight," Buffy answered. "One of us for them."

Giles stood up. "We need to research, see if anything comes up as to what Devon has planned. We shouldn't rush into any plan without knowing everything we can."

"You can research, Giles, but B and I already know the layout of the warehouse," Faith said. "It's all open so there's not a lot of places to hide the gang. We should check it out in the daylight then you can get 'em out at night while B and I deal with everything else."

"We need a better plan than that, Faith."

"Fine, G." Faith stood up and looked down both at Buffy and their watcher. "I'll be the bait. We can trade me."

"No!" Buffy almost yelled the instant Faith was finished with her suggestion and stood. "That's never going to be an option."

"Think about it, B," Faith said as she stared intensely into her eyes, "he's gonna let his guard down if he thinks he's getting what he wants. That's when we can strike."

Buffy took a step forward so she was only a few inches away from Faith. She wanted to be even closer but was nervous to do so with Giles there. She doubted Faith had told him about what was happening between them. "I don't want to lose you, Faith. Not after . . ."

"You're not going to," Faith said quietly.

Giles cleared his throat then and the pair turned away from each other at look at him. "Faith might not be completely wrong in her suggestion."

"Nice to know I'm not completely wrong."

"What I mean is the two of you can't go in there without a plan. Even if Faith goes in as bait there will be too many vampires for you to handle. We'll need to create a diversion or something like that to take out as many of the vampires around Devon as we can."

Faith grinned. "Let's come up with a plan then."

TBC…


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter Eight

* * *

After an hour they hadn't come up with much of a plan at all and Buffy could tell Faith was getting frustrated. Giles said he would dedicate the next couple hours on making some calls and doing some research on what spell Devon might be using but the process was going slower than normal. They were lacking people to help Giles with the research and the two slayers didn't want to sit around and read.

"B, let's go," Faith suddenly said, standing up and walking toward the door. "I have an idea."

"Faith, we can't just leave." Buffy stood up but didn't make a move toward the door. "We need to figure out exactly what Devon plans to do with our blood."

"But we also need to know how to take out as many vamps and those demons as possible and we both know where we can get some info on that."

Buffy smiled and walked toward the door. "Giles, we're gonna do a little recon."

"Do you think that's wise?"

"G, I think I know where we can get some info about Devon's operation, maybe even get some help," Faith said.

He looked thoughtful for a minute before nodding. "Go but please be quick. Once I find out a little more we need to formulate a plan."

The two of them nodded before walked out the door and down the street quickly. Buffy had thought of asking Giles for his car but even in this situation he probably would've said no, likely with a mention that he didn't need his slayers dying in a car accident right before an apocalypse.

"Do you think this will work, Faith?"

Faith shrugged. "Gotta try something. In case you didn't notice, I'm not big with the reading and researching."

Buffy didn't say anything for a minute before turning her head to look at Faith. She realized she looked at her differently now, more like a lover and less like a friend. The thought didn't scare her either. She liked it. "I meant what I said earlier."

"What was that?"

"I can't lose you."

"I know, B," Faith said as she smiled. "I got no plans of leaving ya, not when I finally got you naked."

Buffy laughed. "You sure know how to put it in such heartwarming terms."

"It's what I do."

They shared a smile and Faith took Buffy's hand the rest of the way. The action made Buffy's heart skip a beat and she knew she was falling hard. That only made what they were trying to do all the more scary. She really didn't know how she'd react if anything happened to Faith.

Since they were walking as fast as what would appear normal they arrived at Faith's favorite little diner quickly. Buffy could see the waitress that knew Faith helping customers from behind the counter as she looked through the window. She breathed a little sigh in that there weren't many customers since they would probably be causing a scene.

Sara noticed them walk in and smiled warmly. "Wow, the two of you are gonna become regulars at this point."

Faith took a step forward, a serious look on her face. "We need to see your boss, Sara."

Her eyes darted from Faith to Buffy and back again. "He's not here, Faith. You know that." She looked to the customers in the diner, noticing they weren't paying any attention to them. "He stays out of sight during the day."

"We need to see him now," Buffy put in. "Where is he?"

"What is this all about anyway?" Sara asked, her expression turning more worried. "You know he doesn't want any trouble. He doesn't hurt humans."

"I want to hear that from him and I want to hear it now," Faith said and Buffy could tell she was growing impatient. "Some friends of his are helping do some bad things and I want to talk to him about it. We will cause a scene if we have to, Sara. We're not waiting for him to show up."

Sara's expression changed from strictly worried to nervous and maybe a little scared. "I really need this job, Faith. He pays well and makes sure I'm safe. You know how hard it is to feel safe in Sunnydale."

Faith closed the distance so she was only on the other side of the counter. "If he's not the problem we won't do anything to him. But we need to see him right now."

She sighed. "He lives under the diner. There's a door around the back."

"We won't lay a hand on him if he answers all our questions," Faith said. "I promise."

She only nodded and Faith turned and walked out of the diner, Buffy following close behind. They stayed silent as they walked around the diner to the back. Sure enough next to two half full dumpsters was a door. Faith turned the knob, noticing it was locked.

"What do you think?" Should we knock?" Faith asked with a smirk before jumping up and kicking the door in.

"He could've answered the door."

"But now we don't have to wait." Faith grinned and winked at her, already walking into the small apartment.

Buffy followed and by the time they walked through the short entryway they were met by one of the largest green demons she'd ever seen. She almost wanted to describe him as Kermit on steroids but that might be an understatement since he was built more like the Hulk wearing a short-sleeved shirt that was unbuttoned down the front and a pair of baggy shorts. Buffy almost wanted to laugh at the fact he was able to find something that was actually baggy on him but the thought went away when she realized he was far from happy to see them.

"Faith?" he said is a low, raspy voice. "What are you doing?"

"Only way I could be sure you'd give us the answers we need to know, Galen," Faith said, a very unapologetic look on her face.

"I don't hurt people," he said as he walked back into his small living room as if he knew that's what she was going to ask. He sat down in his chair and looked at them, likely resigned to the fact they wouldn't be leaving.

Buffy and Faith followed him but didn't sit down. There wasn't really anywhere else to sit. Besides his chair and a TV crudely set up on a couple of crates there wasn't much else in the room. Buffy wasn't here to chat anyway. They needed information.

"Do you keep in touch with the rest of your kind that's in Sunnydale?" Faith asked. "Your clan, brothers, cousins, anything like that?"

"Why?"

"'Cause they're in a world of hurt right now," Buffy said. "Some demons that look a hell of a lot like you are working with a vampire that kidnapped our friends."

"You must be Buffy." He looked to Faith and smiled. "She's just like you described."

Buffy raised an eyebrow but didn't say anything about it. They would get off track. "Answer Faith's question."

"There are nine of us in Sunnydale and yes, they are all my family. I know where they all are but not what they do."

"Your family helped to kidnap our friends," Faith said. "Obviously, they don't follow your lead on not hurting humans."

"How do you know they hurt anyone?"

"They're with a vampire who's trying to open the hellmouth and kidnapped three people to get to us but yeah, they're still fucking boy scouts."

Galen looked confused, maybe a little sad, too. "I try to live the best I can and try to be a good example, just live amongst humans, but my younger brothers don't think the same as I do sometimes."

"You need to help us here, Galen," Faith said and Buffy could tell she was trying to stay calm so he would help them without any resistance. "Your brothers can't be at the warehouse they were at last night. They're helping a vamp named Devon to open the hellmouth."

"I don't know if I can do that."

"If you can't or won't, we will kill your brothers," Buffy said. "I don't think you want that, not if you want your family to remain intact."

He stood up and looked down at the two slayers. "Is that a threat?"

"Just telling ya what we're gonna do if you won't intervene," Faith responded. "We're not gonna take it easy on 'em just 'cause you want us to. If they stand in the way of us stopping Devon and getting our friends back we will take them out."

Galen didn't say anything for a minute and it made Buffy think he might not help them. Even though she hated it, she knew they might need to rely on the demon for at least a little help. If he could at the very minimum get his brothers to not show up at the warehouse she knew it would help a great deal. That way Devon wouldn't have the extra muscle.

"I'll help you," he finally said. "They will listen to me."

Faith let a small smile show. "Thanks, big guy."

"What do you want me to do?"

Buffy and Faith shared a look and Buffy gave her a nod, letting her know to continue. "Think you can get out of here in the daylight?"

* * *

Buffy and Faith left Galen at his apartment, letting him sleep since he had worked the entire night at the diner. Buffy had wondered if that was wise since whether or not he was friendly he was still a demon but she let Faith take the lead. She trusted that she knew enough about the demon to know if he would do what he said.

They were silent until they reached the front door of Giles' condo when Faith stopped them and leaned in to kiss Buffy lightly. "Must not have a chance to do that again for awhile."

"Yeah, can't exactly make out while Giles is with us," Buffy said with a smile. "We really need to get a plan together."

"Think Giles will be okay with Galen coming here?" Faith asked. "I guess I didn't think about whether or not he wanted a demon in his place."

"If he helps us, he'll be fine." Buffy paused. "Is Galen his real name?"

"Nah, his real name isn't pronounceable in English," Faith said. "Galen is the closest he thought he could get to it."

"You talked to him a lot, didn't you?"

Faith shrugged. "He's all right. He really doesn't like vampires so I think that's part of the reason he's gonna help us. He thinks vamps are beneath demons. If anyone of 'em get near the diner, he's goes after them."

"And you helped him?"

"Common goal, I guess. Plus, he's a great cook."

Buffy laughed and shook her head as she opened the door and walked inside. They immediately saw that the living room had been overrun with old books and Giles was pacing, looking as though the phone had been attached to his ear since they left. He didn't look too happy either.

"Of course," Giles said quickly into the phone. "Call when you receive them." He hung up and looked at the two slayers. "Any success in what you left to do?"

"Yeah," Faith answered, nodding. "I think we just found a way to take the demons out of the battle."

Giles sat down in a chair and Buffy and Faith sat on the couch as close to each other as they dared. "What have you come up with?"

"I noticed the demons were the same type as one who owns a diner I go to," Faith said, "so we paid him a visit."

"You frequent a place that's owned by a demon?"

"Completely different story, G," Faith said. "The point's that the demons that are helping Devon are this guy's younger brothers and he's not happy they're helping a vampire."

"What will he do to help us?"

"Uh, we were hoping you could help with that." Buffy looked at Faith then Giles. "He's coming here."

* * *

The most surprising part of how their plan was coming together was that Giles and Galen were getting along as though they'd known each other for years. The watcher was impressed at how much Galen knew about the hellmouth and how he liked to talk about his clan and the other types of demons he knew.

"Are you sure you can make sure all the demons won't fight with Devon tonight?"

"I am the head of my clan so they have to listen to me. If you need other demons to help kill this vampire I think I can find a few. There are several of us who own businesses in Sunnydale and do not wish to hurt humans. We also share the same distaste of vampires."

"And they'll be okay with helping slayers?" Buffy asked.

"We share a common goal," Galen said. "It would be foolish for any of them to think Devon would be fair to them if he is victorious."

"They also know that if we think they're against us in all this we got no problem taking 'em out," Faith said. "If we have enough of them on our side this'll be a lot less hard."

"The reason this vampire wants my brothers to help him is that we are very hard to kill." Galen shifted uncomfortably on the couch and Buffy was surprised the furniture hadn't broken under his weight. "I'm sure he knows that you would have a hard time fighting them."

"All the more reason for them to be on our side," Giles said.

"So this is the plan . . ." Buffy started and hoped for her friends' sakes it would work.

* * *

Giles had offered to drive them but Buffy and Faith agreed that a car driving through a street full of rundown or abandoned would draw unwanted attention to them.

Both of them carried a weapons bag as they walked down the street to the warehouse but not for any complicated or overly sinister reason. It was only to keep the weapons hidden as they walked through town. The last thing they needed was someone stopping them because they were walking through downtown Sunnydale with crossbows in their hands.

"Think this will work?" Buffy asked as they stopped in front of the warehouse.

"Even if it does nothing won't doing a little damage to Devon's warehouse make you feel a little better?" Faith commented, a small smirk on her face. "Are you sure this won't hurt the gang?"

Buffy nodded. "If Devon is as smart as he thinks he is, he wouldn't put them by a window. Xander, Willow and Oz are smart enough that they would break one during the day if they had the chance. Devon would never allow that to happen."

"Then let's do this."

The pair moved to stand on the opposite side of the street and pulled out their crossbows, making sure they were ready to go. Buffy looked across the street and wished they could storm the building right away but knew that would be foolish. They had no idea how many, if any, vampires were inside. They weren't even one hundred percent sure their friends were being kept there.

When they had discussed their options with Giles and Galen both Faith and Buffy mentioned that they had noticed that while some of the windows in the warehouse had been completely boarded up, most were simply blacked out. That meant if there were any vampires in the building during the day a broken window might cause a little chaos. From what Buffy remembered from the previous night, the interior of the warehouse was open so light would travel a good distance inside.

"Should we make a game outta this?" Faith asked as she got ready to shoot.

"What kind of game?"

"You know, if we can shoot a window completely out in one shot, if we can hear the vamp screaming and burning after the shot . . . that kind of thing."

Buffy eyed the building, wondering which one to aim for first. "And what does the winner get?"

"Well, when I win I know what I want," Faith said, showing off her dimples as she turned to Buffy. "You."

"Why don't we talk about who gets what once we've damaged some property?" Buffy smiled and winked at her.

"No fun." Faith shook her head in disapproval before aiming and firing, shooting an arrow toward the top of one of the front windows. It broke through, shattering the entire pane. "I half expect vamps to start running out screaming."

Buffy didn't respond, only shook her head with a smile and fired, breaking a pane in a different window. They broke a few more before they started to hear grumblings and shouts from inside. For a moment Buffy though Faith might be right in that they would see vampires run out on fire but that didn't happen. It did sound like whoever was inside was scrambling though and hopefully that meant it would stall whatever they had organized for tonight.

They separated after a minute, Buffy taking one side of the warehouse and Faith the other, and concentrated on any window that wasn't boarded up and would let light in. Buffy kept her distance from the actual building as she did, still not liking the unknown their actions would cause. They weren't sure if demons were inside with any vampires and that would likely be a problem for them if there was. Demons wouldn't have any problem running out to attack them.

The yells got louder until Buffy ran out of arrows and quickly walked over to Faith, who was already on the other side of the street putting her crossbow away.

"I think we rattled them a little."

Faith looked at her and grinned. "Yeah, they sound pissed. How many windows did you break?"

"Enough," Buffy answered, shrugging. "I think I got all the ones that will let sunlight in."

"I think I'm gonna declare myself winner by default then." She helped Buffy close her weapons bag then looked into her eyes, causing Buffy to hold her breath for a moment. Now that Faith had let all her walls down around her it was like Buffy was finally seeing the real Faith. It made her eyes all the more striking. "Guess I get to pick how we celebrate our future victory."

"If you're going where I think you are with this I hope it's a private party." Buffy raised her eyebrow as they began walking. "Group participation is this celebration is . . ."

"Definitely not where I was headed," Faith finished for her. "I want you all to myself."

Buffy felt a blush coming on but didn't say anything else as they walked to the diner. She hoped that whatever went on inside the warehouse didn't involve hurting their friends. It was her thought that even with their preemptive attack on Devon's location he wouldn't be foolish enough to do anything to his captives. He had to know that would hurt his negotiations with them.

Of course, Buffy had no plans of handing over Faith or herself for that matter. With what they were trying to do prior to Devon's midnight deadline, she hoped it wouldn't come to that at all. She didn't want Faith to think she needed to be the bait and sacrifice herself for the rest of them. Faith needed to realize she was a fully a member of the Scooby gang and Buffy hoped to convince her of that.

It didn't take long for them to get to the diner but they didn't go inside, instead walking around the back to the door of Galen's place. Both of them laughed when they realized that not only had the door Faith had kicked in been repaired but there was also a note on it.

"_Slayers, the door is open. Please don't make me buy another one."_

"He knows me so well," Faith said, laughing as she opened the door for Buffy and followed her inside.

They walked into the small apartment and Buffy's mouth dropped slightly as they reached the small living room. It was crammed full with Galen and his brothers. She didn't know how they even were able to fit into the small space.

"I see you have company," Faith said as she eyed all of them.

"These are my brothers." Galen gestured to the eight other demons in the room. "They will not be helping the vampire."

"Do they speak for themselves?" Buffy asked.

"Devon was paying us for protection and to watch out for when your friend returned to Sunnydale," one of them said. "He doesn't trust that many of the vampires can protect him from you like we can."

Buffy narrowed her eyes. "Are any of you responsible for Devon having our friends?"

The demon who spoke nodded and Faith shook her head. "All of you need to realize right now that the only reason you're alive is 'cause of your big bro here."

"They understand," Galen said before any of them could and they all nodded their heads in agreement. "We will help to destroy the vampire."

"Do you think you can get anyone else in on this?" Buffy asked. "The more we have on our side the better chance we have."

"Devon said that one of you will be sacrificed so the hellmouth will be opened," the brother closest to Galen said. "He found a spell that he will recite when he pours your blood onto it. It will make it so the hellmouth can never be closed."

"How do you know that?" Faith asked.

"He talks a lot and doesn't realize how well we hear."

Buffy turned her head and Faith met her eyes. She had no idea if Faith fully believed the rest of the demons but it looked like she believed Galen when he said all of them would help in destroying Devon's plans. Since they didn't have time to find any other help, Buffy knew she needed to place the same trust in Galen Faith had.

"I think there are three or four other demons who would be willing to fight against this vampire," Galen said, answering Buffy's previous question. "They are good fighters but nowhere near what we are."

"Gonna hold you to that," Faith put in. "We're gonna need to meet here tonight after the sunset. I don't think all of you will be able to get to Giles' unnoticed. This is closer to the warehouse anyway."

"We will be ready."

TBC…


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N**: I know it's been awhile between updates so I hope someone remembers this one. I swear the next one won't take as long. *fingers crossed*

Chapter Nine

* * *

They had a couple hours before they needed to meet with the demons so Buffy and Faith decided to go to Buffy's house instead of back to Giles'. The need to unwind a little was obvious since there was so much extra pressure with the battle. Not only did they need to defeat Devon but they needed to make sure their friends were okay.

"That was kinda trippy seeing all those demons in one little apartment," Faith commented as she sat down on the couch and pulled Buffy down with her. "Kind of like a clown car."

"I guess it was." Buffy sat down and smiled at how Faith immediately leaned against her. She knew they needed to talk about last night and what it meant but didn't know if that was a good distraction right now. The focus still needed to be on Devon. "At least we have some help."

"They'll be good backup." Faith let her hand rest on Buffy's thigh. "They can clean up the vamps while we go after Devon."

Buffy didn't respond, only closed her eyes and let herself enjoy the feel of Faith against her. Even though they were fully clothed, she could feel a sense of closeness with Faith. It felt intimate and she really wanted what they had to continue after the battle was done.

"How do you feel today?"

Buffy turned her head to look at Faith but noticed she was looking down away from her. "What do you mean?"

Faith let out a little sigh. "Any regrets yet?"

"No," Buffy said easily. "There's a lot of thoughts going through my head but no regrets. I told you that this morning."

"I know. I kinda thought since we were hooking up while your friends were being kidnapped that you might wanna take it back now."

Buffy noticed Faith still wasn't looking at her and she didn't like it. She didn't want Faith to think she blamed what they did for the kidnappings. "Faith, it wouldn't have mattered what we did. They only needed to make sure we wouldn't try to meet up with any of them." She paused and thought about how Faith had worded her comment. "And they're not my friends, they're our friends. You really need to think of yourself as one of us."

Faith shrugged. "Yeah, I guess."

They stayed silent for a minute. Buffy tried to think of a way to show Faith that even though she wasn't sure what her feelings were telling her she didn't regret anything. Apart from actually stripping and having a repeat performance of the previous night she couldn't think of a good way to prove it.

"What do you think about last night?"

"I don't know," Buffy said honestly. "There's a lot going on in here." She pointed to her head as Faith finally looked at her. "I really like you, Faith. Everything's just moving so fast right now. I want to get the gang back."

Buffy knew she wasn't giving the correct answers or even wording what she wanted to say correctly so she pulled Faith up so she could better look into her eyes. She didn't like that she saw doubt in them, like Faith doubted that she was telling her the truth. That wasn't what she wanted at all so she carefully leaned in and lightly kissed her.

"I don't want you thinking whatever it is you're thinking right now."

Faith raised an eyebrow. "How do you know what I'm thinking?"

"Because you look like I'm going to break up with you before we've even got started. That's not what this is. At most, we're being temporarily stopped by some very bad timing."

"Temporarily?" Faith asked, eyebrow still raised. "Does that mean once we've taken this asshole down we can keep with getting naked?"

Buffy laughed. "Something like that."

Some of the tension between them seemed lift and they relaxed against each other once again. Faith pulled at Buffy until they were more lying on the couch together. They didn't say anything for a few minutes, only basked in the fact that once the battle was over they might be a couple. Buffy had to admit she liked the thought of it, especially given a whole different side of Faith she'd seen. If the other girl's mind was any indication, she wanted a relationship and not just sex. Buffy thought that's what she might want as well.

"I wonder how they knew to look for Xander," Faith commented as she held Buffy close. "He would have to have been around when the Mayor was still planning everything."

"I thought the Mayor tried to have control of all the big vamp players while he was around." Buffy furrowed her brow. "He would have needed to keep a pretty low profile."

"Yeah, he must have waited to see how the ascension played out before starting his operation." Faith slowly moved her hand over Buffy's stomach as she began to lie more against her. "Coward."

Buffy nodded lightly but didn't respond, becoming increasingly comfortable as Faith put her arms around her. She realized how tired she was, dealing with the deadline Devon had set for them and coming up with a plan to stop him had drained her mentally and emotionally. Before she knew it she was falling asleep in Faith's arms.

* * *

"Ready to do this?"

Buffy looked at Faith as they walked from her house to Giles'. They had both dozed for about an hour before waking up and preparing for the upcoming battle. After eating and making some light small talk with Buffy's mother, they went to Buffy's room and got supplies. Some of Buffy's favorite and most useful weapons were put in a duffle bag which she had slung over her shoulder.

"Have to be," Buffy responded. "Can't exactly lose this one."

"I know and that's why we won't lose."

"Losing isn't part of the plan."

Faith only nodded and they walked the rest of the way in silence. Buffy didn't have it in her to make small talk as they walked and even though there was so much she wanted to talk about her mind wasn't in it. She was solely focused on the upcoming battle.

Giles was ready for them when they got to his place, organizing what weapons he had. Buffy looked at them and wondered how much they needed. The demons they were working with likely wouldn't need the weapons they did. She had a feeling they could do a lot of damage with simply their bare hands.

"Buffy, Faith, I was expecting you sooner," Giles said as Faith shut the front door and Buffy placed the weapons bag on the floor.

"Gotta keep up appearances with my mom, Giles," Buffy responded. "I don't want her thinking we're doing anything other than a normal patrol. I don't want her worrying."

"What did she say about the extra weapons?"

"That you wanted to inspect them, make sure that they were in good condition."

Giles nodded but Faith spoke up before he could say anything else. "Let's get the weapons we need and go. We should meet up with Galen as soon as we can."

Buffy looked at Faith and noticed she had her game face on. She wondered if she was nervous about the upcoming battle and if she blamed herself for Willow, Oz and Xander being kidnapped. The thought that if they hadn't hooked up no one would've been taken had never crossed her mind until Faith brought it. She really hoped that she had been able to convince Faith that wasn't the case. Her thought was that she wanted their first night together to only be a happy memory.

"Yes," Giles agreed. "I don't think we need to arm Galen or his brothers. It was my impression that anyone one he would be gathering would be bringing their own."

"Might as well pack anything we might think we need just in case," Buffy said. "Load of the weapons bags and make our way to the diner."

"Don't worry about time." Giles grabbed his keys off the coffee table. "We'll be driving to the diner at least. I can't exactly fit any of the demons in there but the three of us and the weapons will fit comfortably."

Faith smiled but Buffy noticed the smile didn't reach her eyes. It made her think Faith was as nervous as she was. The thought that this was a must win kept repeating in her head and it wouldn't go away.

"Let's load the car then."

* * *

Devon said that the meet up time was midnight and he thought that Buffy would be handing Faith over in return for her friends being released. The whole plan was to take most of the vampires working with Devon out well before the midnight meet. In fact, they planned to have dusted the leader before then, too.

Giles hadn't been able to find out what spell Devon had planned to use on such short notice, instead finding five different versions, so if the time was significant they wanted to make sure he couldn't get any slayer blood. The amount he needed wasn't really specified either so both Buffy and Faith wanted to keep their fighting injuries to a minimum.

When they arrived at the diner it was dark enough for the demons to easily assemble outside Galen's front door without getting any unwanted attention. Along with Galen and his brothers there were three other demons. Two of them were the same kind, yellow, scaly and about six feet tall. They were skinny and had bows with them. Buffy figured they would be most helpful shooting from a distance.

The other demon was more of an orange color and more built than the other two but Buffy also thought he looked a little less intelligent than the other two. His eyes were black and his face lacked any expression. He carried a large ax with him and it looked like he wanted to use it on the slayers as much as the vampires they were about to take down.

"Okay," Buffy started, "here's what we know. Devon is at a warehouse. The windows were all boarded up or blacked out until today when Faith and I shot most of them out."

"We can position ourselves at the neighboring rooftops and shoot from the outside if that's the case," one of the yellow demons said.

"How well can you shoot that thing?" Faith asked.

"Our training begins at birth," the other one said.

Buffy looked at Faith, who only shrugged, before continuing. "Okay, we'll go with that then. The only door they use is a side door. The front doors are boarded and padlocked but they didn't look very sturdy when we looked at them earlier."

"My brothers have told me the door is not blocked from the inside. We'll be able to break it open," Galen said. "We can go in from the front and assist you through the side entrance."

Faith nodded. "We need a couple of you with Giles. He's in charge of finding and freeing our friends."

"I will go with Mr. Giles and protect him," Galen said. "Bren will go with me."

The demon to the right of Galen nodded and Buffy had to remind herself not to stare. The sight of all of them together was still almost comical and Galen wasn't lying when he said he was the leader. It looked like none of them would be talking at the meeting without him agreeing to it first which was fine by her. It meant they could agree on everything faster.

"Okay, we'll need to stake every vamp outside of the warehouse then Faith and I will enter through the side entrance with two of you. The rest will storm the front. Giles, Galen and Bren will go through last and look for the gang."

"Sounds like a plan, B," Faith said quickly, a serious expression on her face. "Let's stake some vamps."

* * *

There were around a dozen vampires surrounding the warehouse as they approached it but all of them either ran or put up almost zero fight for the group. The fact that some of them ran didn't surprise Buffy at all. Vamps weren't exactly known for their courage and many of them tried to run when she was on patrol, too.

Two of Galen's brothers joined Buffy and Faith as they walked around to the alley and the side door. It was open and unguarded but most of the guards had already run so Buffy didn't think that seemed out of place. There also seemed to be a lot of activity inside.

Buffy looked at Faith before they walked through the doorway and met her eyes. Neither of them said anything, not wanting the two demons with them to overhear their moment, but Buffy hoped the look she was giving her said everything. She wanted Faith to know that she didn't want anything to happen to her and didn't want her to do anything stupid, mostly attempt to sacrifice herself. Buffy wanted time with Faith, time to figure out what their budding relationship meant.

Faith winked and nodded before walking into the warehouse, Buffy following close behind and the two demons entering after her. Their eyes went wide as they saw more vamps than they could possibly count gathered in the warehouse. She looked around and noticed all of them were talking amongst themselves, obviously not ready for them.

"B, over there," Faith whispered as she nudged her.

Buffy looked and saw there were a couple rooms in the back corner of the warehouse and three vamps stood guard. It looked to be the best place where Willow, Oz and Xander would be held. She also noticed only vamps were in the warehouse now, too. That definitely helped them.

Looking back at the two demons, Buffy said, "Ready to back us up?"

Both of them nodded and one of them leaned down toward them. "You should get their attention. Our brothers will be breaking through the door soon and your timing will be off."

"Got it," Buffy said, smirking as she looked to Faith. "You wanna take this or should I?"

Faith waved her arm in front of her. "Go ahead, B. You do it so well."

She grinned before turning her attention to the crowd of vamps, really hoping most of them were terrible fighters. "Hey!" She waited a moment for all conversation to stop and most of the vamps looked at her. "Are you waiting for us? Sorry, we're a little early."

No one moved for a few seconds but Buffy's voice carried very well in the warehouse because Devon walked out of the back rooms.

"A little ahead of schedule, I see," he said. His demeanor looked calm but Buffy could tell he was far from happy with their early arrival nor with who they were with. "I also see you've hijacked my security team."

"They realized which side is the right side," Buffy responded, "and we won't treat them like you would."

"No matter, the end result will be the same." He looked around. "Take them. I need only one slayer alive. Do whatever you want with the other."

Buffy and Faith prepared themselves for the rush of vampires as they began to run toward them, stakes in hand and a couple extra weapons hidden in their jackets. Buffy felt the two demons move to their sides in an effort to protect them and looking at the vampires in front of them she was glad they were there.

As if on cue, there was a large crash in the front of the warehouse. The front doors all but exploded as three of Galen's brothers stormed through them followed by the rest of the clan, Galen, the orange demon and Giles. Arrows began to reign in through the broken windows, dusting a few vampires instantly.

Buffy looked at Devon and noticed that not only was he furious that they'd managed to get some muscle on their side he also looked a little worried. That gave her hope that even though there were more vampires than she ever wanted to face they might have the upper hand. The element of surprise looked to have worked.

"Get them and kill those disgusting traitors!"

The vampires rushed at the demons and slayers, trying their best to take out the beings that were about triple their size. Buffy and Faith separated, each moving in opposite directions as they fought and staked vamps. Buffy could feel one of Galen's brothers near her the entire time and she wondered if it was his job to protect her. It made it seem like Galen had a soft spot for Faith and therefore Buffy, too.

What surprised her right away was that some of the vampires on Devon's team had obviously been training to fight them. They had better skills than the average vampire and seemed to want to coordinate attacks with some of the others. Buffy felt like she needed more hands and stakes so she could dust more than one at a time. The only thing helping was that they were focusing more of the organized fighting to the demons. Galen has been right: they were proving very hard to kill.

After getting a hard kick to the ribs and a punch to the jaw because she was trying to locate Faith in the madness, Buffy decided it would be best to work on autopilot and concentrated on staking anything in front of her. She knew Faith could take care of herself and would be concentrating on the fight, something she needed to do. Once they staked most of the vamps she knew the rest would probably try to run and save themselves. Brave vampires were the exception and not the rule in her experience.

An arrow hit a vamp to the right of her and one of the demons practically ripped the head off another to her left, giving her a path toward her watcher. Giles was fighting off a vampire with an ax, using the moves he'd taught Buffy to not only defend himself but behead the vamp in front of him.

"Giles!"

"Buffy," he said as he let out a breath, "do you know where they are?"

She punched a vamp hard as he ran toward her, making him stagger backwards. The demon backing her up immediately picked up him and threw him, giving her a little space to talk to Giles. "There are some rooms in the back. That has to be where they are. It's where Devon walked out of, too."

"Do you see him in the crowd?"

Buffy looked as she continued to fight the vamps that continued to move toward her. The demons kept it so she didn't have to take them all on at once but some still got to her. "No, I don't think so. He might be back there with them."

"Where's Faith?"

"She was making her way toward the rooms."

"Then we need to move that way."

"You hear that guys?" Buffy yelled at the demons around her, hoping she could be heard over all the fighting. "Let's move to the back!"

"Stay with us, Buffy," Galen said as he appeared on the other side of Giles. He had a wound in his side, a dark liquid oozing out of it. "We will make sure none of them get away. Where is Faith?"

"Already back there will one of your brothers."

He nodded and they moved forward, continuing to fight all the vamps in the warehouse. Arrows continued to fly into the warehouse and Buffy knew the pair were much better shots than she would ever be. She would've easily taken someone out with friendly fire by now but all the shots were right on target. Between them and the demons, they were creating a path for her and Giles to get to the back unharmed.

When they reached the back rooms, what looked to be offices when the warehouse was actually used for its intended purpose, they were met with Faith fighting two vamps and her bodyguard demon on the ground. It looked like he came up against vampires with knives, suffering from multiple stab wounds. Faith looked like she'd been roughed up a bit but there weren't any obvious wounds on her body.

"Faith!"

"B, about time you showed up," Faith almost grunted out as she managed to stake one of the pair she was fighting.

Buffy pulled the other vamp away from Faith and staked him quickly as she had caught him off guard. The pair quickly looked each other over, looking for any injuries, before running over to a closed door and kicking it in.

"Shit," Faith muttered as they ran in.

Devon and five of his inner circle, all dressed in suits, stood there as though they were waiting for them. Willow, Oz and Xander were being held by three of them, each one struggling to get away. All three of them looked like they weren't captured without a fight either. Their clothes were dirty and Buffy could see some dried blood.

"Okay, slayers," Devon said. "Time to deal."

"Our people are in the process of staking all your followers," Faith said. "You're not in much position to deal."

"I disagree," Devon responded and looked right at Buffy. "I still have your friends and you can still trade me a slayer. Followers are easy to come by."

Buffy looked at Faith and she knew the other slayer would hand herself over without a second thought. Now it looked like they were going to have to at least fake them out a little as they could hear the demons finishing off the rest of the vampires.

"I'll go," Faith said slowly, "but you need to let them go. Now."

Devon smirked. "See? We can all be reasonable here."

One of the suited vamps began to reach out to grab Faith but before he could another one cried out as Xander slammed his head backward, breaking the vamp's nose. He let go and Xander moved out of the way as Giles reached for the crossbow strapped to his back and dusted him.

Faith used the distraction to pull the vamp trying to reach her to instead pull him closer and staking him easily. Buffy took the fact there was now two less vampires on Devon's side there would be no more dealing. She saw Giles toss a stake to Xander and they moved after the pair of vamps who had death grips on Willow and Oz, using them like personal shields.

Buffy watched as the other vamp by Devon turned and ran, attempting to escape but not getting very far. He was stopped by Galen and one of his brothers, both looking as upset as she thought they probably could. They grabbed him and pulled him out of the room as he cried out.

The pair finally came face to face with Devon without any of his followers throwing themselves in front of him and Buffy almost laughed. He looked so small and unable to defend himself. It made her wonder how he had gotten anyone to follow him.

"You really thought you could beat us?" Faith said as they cornered him. "We're the Chosen Two. We stopped the fucking Mayor."

"And you are nothing like the Mayor," Buffy added.

Devon looked at the two of them defiantly, almost as if he was trying to size them up. Finally, he focused on Buffy. "I've been around Sunnydale for awhile, waiting for the right moment. I've seen what's happened. She will betray you one day. She'll kill again."

Buffy could feel Faith tense up, not needing to even look her way to tell. "You don't know anything and you know how I know that? You thought you'd win."

"You still have doubts. You both do. I can . . ."

An arrow shot him in the chest and he was dust, making him unable to finish his thought. Buffy turned around and saw Giles holding his crossbow, a determined look on his face. She smiled and nodded to him, silently thanking him for cutting Devon off. Faith didn't need to hear any of that.

"I think we've heard enough." Giles nodded his head toward the door. "We need to go. Xander might have some broken ribs."

Buffy took Faith's hand and smiled warmly at her, hoping she could see how much Buffy didn't believe anything Devon said. She looked into her eyes and saw the doubt there, something she knew she would need to get rid of later.

Now they needed to make sure everyone was okay and maybe, just maybe, do a little celebrating.

TBC...


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: thanks to everyone who's been sticking with this one. I always try to get the next chapter up faster than the last but sometimes it just doesn't happen. I hope it's worth the wait. :)**

Chapter Ten

* * *

After taking Xander to the hospital and making sure everyone else was unharmed, it was decided that they could hold off on celebrating for a day. Everyone was tired and Galen's clan was mourning the loss of one of their brothers. It seemed now was the perfect time for rest.

Willow and Oz stayed at the hospital with Xander, both insisting they were fine and that they could meet up with everyone in the morning. No one argued when it was suggested that the rest of them leave and get some rest. Buffy knew she looked like she could use a good night's sleep.

She figured she would be making a quick stop at Giles' and then be walking home alone but Faith had quickly told their watcher she would be walking her home. Buffy was whisked away moments later and they walked to her house. They weren't more than a block away from the condo when Faith took her hand and held it tightly.

They didn't talk the entire time and Buffy wondered what was going through her head. She knew Faith didn't have the greatest self-esteem and those last words Devon had uttered had had to have cast some doubt. The other slayer always tried to look like she had the confidence to overcome words like that but Buffy knew better.

"So," Buffy started once they were inside her house, "are you okay? You know, after what Devon said?"

"It's fine, B."

Buffy smiled as Faith put her arms around her but she knew she needed to stay on topic. "No, it's not, Faith. You know it's not true, right? No one believes what Devon said. I don't believe it."

"I know, B."

Their eyes met and Buffy knew Faith was far from fine. What Devon had said had gotten to her and that was just what he wanted. It was one last strike that they had to deal with. She knew there wasn't anything she could say, at least not tonight, that would make Faith get over what had been said so she only pressed Faith against her.

Faith rested her forehead against hers. "I wanna stay with you tonight."

Buffy knew she did without her having to say anything. Faith had made no move to leave and after last night she knew both of them would be okay with a repeat performance.

"We don't have to do anything," Faith explained quietly. "I just wanna be with you."

She couldn't think of anything to say so Buffy only took Faith by the hand and led her up the stairs to her room. The house was dark and she was positive her mother was asleep given the late hour but none of that was really in her head.

Her mind kept going back to the dreams she'd shared with Faith. There were two things that never happened in the ones she'd visited and it wasn't a stretch to think that the ones Faith had without her were the same. All of them had her stating that the two of them would never fool around in her room and that she seemed to be ashamed to tell her mother that she was falling in love with Faith.

If they were going to continue being together, dating and being a couple, Buffy didn't want to follow with what the dreams had shown her. She didn't want Faith to think she was ashamed of their relationship and that she was afraid to tell her mother about them. Once they talked about what future they had together, she intended to be upfront with everyone about it.

Buffy pulled Faith into her room and closed the door, locking it for good measure. She slowly wrapped her arms around Faith, a small smile on her face. "Didn't think you'd ever be up here, did you?"

Faith slowly shook her head. "Kinda thought it'd be too risky for you."

She leaned in and kissed Buffy lightly, keeping it chaste much to Buffy's surprise. It didn't last too long either, causing Buffy to wonder if Faith really didn't want to have sex. From what she had always bragged about, it had seemed sex was the one thing she thought about above all else.

"We don't have to do anything you're not comfortable with." Faith tightened her hold slightly, keeping Buffy pressed against her. "I know your mom is in the next room."

The other girl looked both sweet and nervous, making Buffy think of how cute she looked. It wasn't something people probably ever thought when they looked at Faith but right now that was all she looked. Buffy thought she looked pretty damn sexy, too, and she knew Faith would agree with that. That was one area where she never seemed to lack for confidence.

"You're really cute when you have that look," Buffy said quietly, thinking Faith should get used to her saying things like that.

"Don't think anyone's called me cute before." Faith smiled nervously and Buffy thought if it was lighter she might have been able to see her blushing. "Not even when I was, like five or something."

"You are." Buffy slowly pushed Faith back towards her bed. "I want you to realize that I'm not ashamed of us. I know in the dreams . . ."

"That's okay, B. I get it."

"You don't have to 'get it' though," Buffy said, trying not to raise her voice. "I don't want you to keep your hands to yourself just because we're in my room and my mom might be in the house. And if we're serious about being together I'm not gonna hide that from my mom. I don't wanna have to hide that from anyone."

Even though it was dark and the only light in the room was from the streetlight outside, Buffy could see Faith's face light up. It made her sad to think that her new girlfriend wouldn't automatically think she would be able to tell everyone they were dating.

Buffy leaned in and put her lips to Faith's ear. "If you can be quiet, so can I."

She didn't wait for Faith to say anything back, instead placing her hands inside Faith's coat, encouraging her to shrug it off. The other girl did and Buffy took it and tossed it to the side. Then she carefully pulled Faith's shirt off and once again did it without any resistance. Buffy smiled at that Faith wasn't wearing a bra.

"Last night I didn't have a chance to really do this right," Buffy said. "I was too caught up in everything, maybe a little overwhelmed."

Faith sighed out as Buffy placed her hands on her sides, moving them up until they were just below her breasts. "I didn't want you to feel like that."

Buffy leaned in and kissed her, smiling as she left Faith's hands move over her back. "Doesn't make last night anything less than amazing."

"I think we can top it."

Even though Buffy was completely distracted by Faith's now naked breasts it wasn't enough to make her not help Faith in taking off her shirt and bra. She closed her eyes as Faith began to move her insistent yet soft hands over her. At that moment she knew that like the night before it was going to be hard to stay quiet.

Buffy wanted so desperately to take charge this time. The need to make Faith know that she was quickly falling for her and that she wasn't scared of what was happening was the most important thing right now. She'd given her some very vague answers earlier in the day but that was only because she couldn't translate her feelings into words. She could try to show her though.

They moved to sit on the bed, carefully kissing as their hands moved over any exposed skin. First, Buffy's hands moved over Faith's back but once she got the courage to really explore her front she wondered why she hadn't done so earlier. The feel of her hands on Faith's bare breasts was something she wanted to experience over and over.

When they broke apart Faith began to kiss down her neck. "I love that your hands are on me, B."

"I like it."

Faith moved back up and they kissed again before moving so they were lying down. Buffy ended up on her back and Faith more on her side as the kissing became more passionate yet still slow. There wasn't a need to rush through anything. It felt as though they had all the time in the world.

Buffy felt Faith's hand leave one of her breasts and move down until it reached her jeans. She popped open the top button and easily zipped her zipper down before starting to ease her hand inside. It was something Buffy really wanted but there was something else she wanted more so she placed her hand over Faith's, stopping her progress.

"Are you okay?" Faith asked in a whisper as they broke away. "I thought . . ."

"I wanna do something first, okay?"

Faith smirked and Buffy smiled as she could see her visibly become more relaxed. "You can do whatever you want, babe."

Those words meant so much to Buffy and she lightly pushed at Faith until she was completely on her back. Then she started to unbutton her jeans and slide them off. She tried to keep eye contact with Faith the entire time but once she started to get her completely naked she became distracted by that.

She was amazed by her body, even more so than the night before. Faith helped her get her jeans and panties off then looked to be content to lie back and watch whatever Buffy intended to do. She even placed her hand on her arm and gave her an encouraging smile, like she wanted Buffy to be completely relaxed.

Buffy moved over her hands over Faith's legs, reveling in how soft her skin was everywhere. She lowered her head and placed a few light kisses on her thighs, wondering if she had the confidence to move her kisses just that small amount higher.

"B, you should take your jeans off, too," Faith said, her hand still trying to stay in contact with any part of Buffy's skin. "I wanna see all of you."

That was all she needed to hear and moved to lie back beside Faith so she could wiggle out of her jeans and panties without needing to get off the bed. Even though the thought of stripping for Faith was incredibly hot she knew they could do that another time. Hopefully, that time would be when the other girl had her own apartment so they could be completely alone.

As soon as she kicked the rest of her clothes off Faith pulled her close and Buffy moved so she was on top of the other girl. They both sighed at the contact and kissed passionately. Buffy felt that Faith was trying hard not to flip them and take control so she knew that she should do what she wanted now. The woman underneath her wasn't known for her patience.

Buffy broke away and began to kiss and lick her way down Faith's neck. She felt Faith's hands move over her back as she did, almost as though she wanted to make sure she wouldn't get scared and stop. That wasn't something she was thinking though. The only thought in her mind was about what she wanted to do.

She kept moving down, kissing past her neck to her collarbone. She placed light kisses there, too, smiling as she heard the quiet sighs coming from Faith. It gave her a little boost of confidence to know that she was doing something Faith liked and continued lower.

Once she was face to face with Faith's breasts she became nervous for only a moment before she began kissing over them. The sighs coming from Faith increased and she let out an almost too loud of a groan when Buffy took a hard nipple into her mouth and lightly sucked.

"Damn, baby . . . that feels so good."

Buffy smiled against her skin once again and continued with what she was doing. She kissed and sucked on her, loving how she didn't feel the need to rush. Faith wasn't rushing her either even though she knew the other girl was getting more and more turned on. She could feel it against her thigh.

Even though she wanted to stay there longer, Buffy decided she should continue to work her way down and began kissing her flat stomach. Faith kept her hands on her shoulders as she did, still lightly massaging her shoulders. It felt so good it was almost distracting but it wasn't enough for Buffy to stop from moving to where she wanted.

For a few moments Buffy moved past Faith's pussy to place kisses on the insides of her thighs. She knew she was really working Faith up, as evidenced by the fact there were hands gripping her shoulders. It made he feel a little prouder.

She looked up and locked eyes with Faith. Buffy saw so much in them, some things that she couldn't even bring herself to think about. It was still too early for them for her to decipher all of the emotions she saw. But that didn't mean she didn't like seeing them.

Buffy winked at her before lowering her lips, giving Faith's clit a light kiss before taking it into her mouth and sucking.

"Shit," Faith hissed out. She sounded like she was struggling not to cry out.

Making sure Faith stayed quiet wasn't the first thing on her mind, not while her tongue was currently exploring her pussy. It was definitely a new experience since she hadn't done anything like that to Faith the night before. Sure, Faith had put her tongue to good use but she had been a little nervous and the other girl had steered her away from doing it. Tonight was different and Faith wasn't stopping her from eating her out.

There was still a small amount of nervousness because of her inexperience but that was easily forgotten as she continued to hear Faith struggle to keep quiet. She moved off of Faith's clit and moved down to her wet hole, teasing it with her tongue. That was something she thought Faith might like: teasing. From the muffled moan she heard she thought she was right.

"Baby," Faith gasped out, "I need you in me."

Buffy didn't waste any more time, slowly pushing her tongue into her. She felt Faith's hand grip her head hard, dipping her short nails into her scalp, but that didn't stop Buffy from beginning to move her tongue in and out. After a minute she moved her hand and began to rub her clit as well. She was sure Faith was having a hard time keeping quiet now.

After only a couple minutes she knew Faith was already so close so she picked up the pace with her tongue, wanting the other girl to come with her tongue inside her. She tried her best to keep Faith where she was, too. There was a danger of her falling off the bed if Faith kept thrusting into her as hard as she was.

Faith let out a grunt. "I'm gonna come, B."

It sounded strained and it was easy for Buffy to notice that Faith was still struggling with being quiet. She almost wanted to stop and give herself a little congratulatory pat on the back but Faith was already so close and she didn't want to delay that. Her tongue moved as fast as it could until she felt Faith come all over her face. It was a feeling she knew she'd never forget.

Faith sounded muffled but Buffy didn't have much opportunity to stop and look at her. Instead she wanted to make sure she kept her orgasm going for as long as she could. She hungrily drank down all of liquid flowing into her mouth, instantly loving it. It seemed she was starting to love everything about Faith.

It was another few minutes until Faith's body seemed to relax a little and her hands gripped at Buffy's arms, attempting to pull her back up. Buffy had been licking the wetness off her inner thighs but decided she wanted to see Faith's face. She hoped it would show her that Faith had enjoyed every second of what she'd done.

She lighted placed kisses on Faith's skin as she quickly moved back up until she was able to look into her eyes. They looked at each other for only a moment, Buffy seeing everything she wanted and more, before kissing again.

While they were kissing Faith took the opportunity to flip them so she was hovering over Buffy. It was a move Buffy had expected but she thought she had tired her out enough that she wouldn't take control so soon. She wondered how much it would take to tire her out.

"You're so beautiful, Buffy," Faith said as she began to thrust down. "I still need you so much."

It looked like she wanted to say something else but she held back and kissed her again. Buffy held onto her tightly and returned the kiss as with as much passion as she felt Faith giving her. It seemed that all she could really do was hold on and move with the other girl as she felt her orgasm fast approaching.

When they broke apart again Faith put her lips to her ear, placing light kisses on it and whispering softly. "You feel incredible against me, B. I've wanted this since the first moment I saw ya. You're the only one I'll ever want."

"Faith, I'm so close. Kiss me."

She did and they kissed sloppily as they moved against each other faster. Buffy felt like she could feel every part of Faith and it was almost too much for her to comprehend. The fact that every time Faith looked into her eyes she could see everything in them was beyond words. Faith wasn't like that with anyone except for her. It made her feel so special.

Buffy was determined to make the sex last longer but the way Faith moved against her, the way she kissed and touched her, was making her come faster than she wanted. She wondered how long Faith could go before she was exhausted. All this was so new to her.

Faith rested her forehead against Buffy's, continuing to thrust hard. "Let go, baby. I know you want to. You don't need to hold back. Come for me, B."

"You need to keep kissing me, Faith. It's getting . . . hard to . . . keep quiet."

Faith smiled before covering her mouth with her own, giving her a kiss that was both tender and passionate at the same time. It was only a few more thrusts before Buffy felt herself both come and scream into Faith's mouth. Only a few seconds after that she felt Faith do the same, feeling a gush of fluid mix with her own. The feel of it almost made her come for a second time.

Over the next few minutes they slowed their movements until Faith finally collapsed on top of Buffy. She took the opportunity to wrap her arms tightly around the girl on her, trying to keep her right where she was. The feel of Faith's weight on her, her sweaty skin still lightly sliding against her own, was too good of a feeling for it to end too soon.

Eventually she loosened her grip to the point where Faith rolled them so she was on her back again and Buffy rested against her. She moved a little off to Faith's side so she wasn't completely on her but stayed in her arms. The other girl wasn't exactly letting her move very far.

Buffy draped an arm over Faith's stomach and placed a light kiss on her shoulder. "I like being in your arms," she admitted quietly, becoming nervous almost instantly because of how it sounded.

Faith didn't say anything for a moment causing Buffy to dare to look at her face. She almost breathed a sigh of relief when she saw a smile on her face. "I like it, too. Never really did this before, except for last night of course. It's new."

"What, the after sex cuddling?"

She nodded. "I never wanted to with anyone else before. I only wanted to get off and get out. That's something I never want with you."

"Yeah?" Buffy moved so she could see Faith's face better. They ended up facing each other with their arms around each other. "I can't say I have much experience with all of this but I think you're a natural."

"Don't know about that, B." Faith leaned in and kissed her nose. "I think you make me want to me better. I wanna be a better person for you."

Buffy grinned at that but she didn't want Faith to only be a better person for her. She wanted her to know she was a good person regardless. "You don't need me for that, Faith. You're an amazing person. Someone I'm really falling for."

They kissed softly again and Buffy was sure Faith didn't want to respond to that. For someone who acted like she had all the confidence in the world, in reality that wasn't the case. It was something she'd definitely have to work on with her. Faith needed to see how amazing she was even though she was still trying to get over her past mistakes.

"Are you always gonna try to change the subject by doing that?" Buffy asked.

"Baby, when you're naked I don't think we'll be talking a whole lot," Faith answered with a dimpled grin. "If I didn't need a little breather, or if we were completely alone, we wouldn't be talking right now."

Buffy knew she was blushing and she shivered at the thought. Faith seemed to take that as a cue and she let go of her only enough to cover the two of them with blankets. They snuggled against each other a little more and Buffy liked how it felt to be pressed against the other girl. She wished it could happen every night.

"How close are you to getting an apartment, Faith?"

Faith grinned. "Almost got enough but I'll work extra shifts if I have to. I wanna find out what will happen once we don't have watchers and parents to think of."

"And I can't wait for that to happen but I think I need a little sleep first," Buffy said, finally feeling the exhaustion from the battle.

"Should we put some clothes on? Maybe Mrs. S will check in on you in the morning. I don't want her to find out that way."

Faith moved to get out of bed but Buffy stopped her. "Door's locked, Faith. Don't worry about it. I just want to sleep in your arms, okay?"

The grin on Faith's face made her heart melt a little. "Anything you want, baby."

Buffy only smiled and snuggled into Faith's curves, easily falling asleep now that all she could feel was Faith.

TBC…


	12. Chapter 12

Epilogue

**A/N**: here's the last chapter. Thank you to everyone who's read/reviewed throughout. Much appreciated! Enjoy! :)

* * *

_*Four years later*_

Buffy slowly started to wake up as the sun began to make its way into her room and almost instantly had a smile on her face. There was a lot to smile about.

It felt a little strange now to wake up in her old bedroom. She hadn't lived there in a few years and she only ever stayed over on holidays and special occasions, mostly when it was too late to go back to the apartment. That was the reason for this sleepover anyway.

Yesterday had been one of the biggest days of her life: she had graduated from college. It was a day she never thought would come so it had been an exciting day. As far as Giles could remember, no slayer had ever achieved such an honor. Most had never lived to be that old. Her mother had practically glowed the entire day which made Buffy even happier. She loved that she was able to make her proud. It wasn't very often she was able to do that or at least that's what she thought.

The ceremony had been kind of dull but Buffy kept a smile on her face the entire time. Her mother and Faith had to have taken at least a hundred pictures and Faith had told her she better have a smile on her face for each one so she did. She even joked Faith should become an amateur photographer because even during the ceremony she was trying to get Buffy to do something for a shot.

After that there was a party at her mother's house which went late. It was small, just a few friends and family, but it was still a good time. Xander and his girlfriend, Anya, Willow and her girlfriend, Tara, her mom, Giles and a few friends that were either classmates or Faith's coworkers were in attendance.

Buffy sighed contentedly at the fun memories from the previous night and turned her head to see Faith sleeping next to her. They'd both had a lot to drink while celebrating and Buffy was surprised either of them had managed to change out of their clothes before crashing. The last somewhat clear memory she had was Faith carrying her up the stairs and whispering in her ear that she was proud of her. Her girlfriend had to be the reason she was in pajamas this morning.

They had been together all this time and Buffy still couldn't believe how long they'd managed to stay a couple. She doubted anyone thought they would have made it this long. There were times she hadn't thought they would.

The two of them had taken their relationship slow over the last few years. After Devon was defeated, they decided going slow was the best way for them. Going fast would likely have caused them to break up or that was what both of them feared. After that first night, Buffy wanted to stay with Faith at all costs.

Faith's dreams had brought them together and for that Buffy was thankful but their relationship had not followed their path. The first and most important difference was that Buffy insisted they be upfront with everyone about the fact the two of them were going to date. She didn't like that the dream version of her was too nervous and maybe even a little embarrassed to tell her own mother who she was dating and falling in love with. It wasn't fair to anyone involved but especially not to Faith. There wasn't any way she could do that to her.

Both of them had sat Joyce down and told her the day after Devon had been dusted. Her mother had had her reservations with her only daughter dating someone who was still dealing with some dark demons from the death of the Deputy Mayor and she was honest about them. Faith seemed to prove herself though and Joyce slowly came around. She quickly saw how protective Faith was of her daughter and Buffy thought she probably liked that they were taking things slow, too.

Of course, they didn't tell her that even though they were taking it slow they were having an amazing amount of sex.

Everyone else took the news okay. Giles was the one they had the most fun with though. He was very easy to embarrass and Faith never could seem to stop herself. It only ever took a few seconds to get him to clean his glasses or send him off muttering.

By the time Buffy had started her first year of college, Faith had moved into a small apartment close to the campus. Buffy had helped her pick it out and was over there whenever she could. She didn't move in right away, both because of their wish to take it slow and the fact her mother wanted her to live in the dorms for at least one year. They only lived apart for that one year though because the day they celebrated one year together was the day she moved into the apartment.

Even though they were happy and the last few years were all Buffy could ask for they hadn't all been good times. Faith had needed to adjust to Buffy's college schedule at first and there were multiple times that first year where not only did they not see each other every day but a couple times it was multiple days at a time. That was something they argued about constantly until they were able to work out a better schedule. Of course, once they moved in together that problem was all but gone.

There were also bouts of jealousy from both of them. One time it got so bad Buffy moved out of the apartment and back home with her mother for a couple weeks because they couldn't be in the same room anymore. All they did was argue and accuse each other of not being happy. Something had to give.

When she left Buffy feared she and Faith were over but after two weeks both of them missed each other too much. Faith showed up at the house with a dozen roses and Buffy was more than willing to take her back. She loved her too much and knew she was probably only hours away from showing up at the apartment wearing next to nothing. Faith would never say no to that.

She looked over at Faith and had to keep from laughing at the distance she was from her. When Faith first started joining the family on holidays and special occasions she always slept in the guestroom. She would always seek into Buffy's room to say goodnight properly though and her mother must have known. A couple Christmases ago she told them they didn't need to pretend they were okay with separate rooms.

Even with that, Faith usually kept some distance between them. Buffy thought it was cute that she was trying to be respectful but she knew there wasn't a need. It wasn't like they would be walked in on. Still, instead of sleeping naked and curled up together as was their normal routine, at her mother's house there were pajamas and not much touching. They hadn't even had sex in the room since that night battling Devon.

Buffy sighed and pulled Faith closer. After grumbling a little in her sleep, Faith moved until her head was resting on Buffy's shoulder. She placed a kiss on the top of her head and snuggled against her girlfriend.

Everyday Buffy thanked whatever happened to make her able to share in Faith's dreams. They decided that they didn't care how it happened so they never went looking for the cause and after they got together the dreams went away. That was okay with Buffy. There was no need for the dreams when she had the real thing.

There had only been one dream since and Buffy wasn't even sure if it was one that she actually shared with Faith. If they did share it Faith hadn't anything. The whole incident had shocked Buffy and she didn't know how to bring it up because that night she dreamt of Faith and her playing happily at her mother's house with a little girl . . . their daughter.

When she woke up Buffy couldn't keep the smile off her face, even though she knew the dream was set years in the future. A dream of having a family with her wonderful girlfriend was definitely something to smile about as was that they were still together several years later. Faith didn't say anything that morning though and didn't act any differently so Buffy wasn't sure if it was only her imagination.

An incident a week later made her think maybe Faith did share the dream though. One of the guys in Buffy's study group had brought his one year old daughter and when Faith came to pick her up she saw the little girl sitting happily on Buffy's lap. Buffy had never seen Faith's eyes get that wide before but she resisted commenting or teasing her about it. She didn't want to cause a fight and Faith looked genuinely freaked out.

Faith moved against her then and Buffy smiled as she held her tighter. She wanted a future with Faith, a normal one with a house and a kid or two. The normal part of that future they could even kind of do now. There had been a major mistake in a spell during a fight with a big bad last year and all the potential slayers were activated. The Chosen Two could be semi-retired now.

Of course, they'd never be fully retired and that was okay with Buffy. There were nights she still had the urge to slay and she knew Faith felt it, too. They usually patrolled a couple nights a week and helped Giles and two other watchers with the three slayers in Sunnydale. Even with that, it felt good that they didn't have to go out every night.

Faith groaned quietly and moved against her more. "This feels weird when we have clothes on."

"Is that why you end up all the way on the other side of the bed?" Buffy asked quietly as she smirked down at her.

Faith shifted so she could look at Buffy better. "It would feel weird trying to do disgusting things to you when your mom is in the next room."

"You act like we haven't done it before."

"Yeah, but that was before Mrs. S knew that I intended on getting ya naked whenever I could," Faith explained. "After we told her, this seemed to be off limits." She gestured around the room.

"I don't think that's a good reason."

"Okay, how 'bout the fact Giles is in there with her?"

Buffy made a face. "I get wigged out at the thought of my mom and Giles."

"Yeah, can't you just imagine what they're doing in there?" Faith teased as she moved a hand over Buffy's stomach.

Buffy groaned, trying to get the image of her mother and her watcher out of her head before it stayed there forever and ever. After a couple years of tiptoeing around the subject they'd started dating a year ago and Giles moved in two months ago. She had been slightly apprehensive at first but now Buffy was fine with the situation. They made each other happy and that was all she cared about. As long as Faith didn't try to put images of them getting all wriggly in her head that is.

"Stop it," Buffy said before starting to giggle as Faith began to tickle her. "Thinking about that makes me never want to have sex again."

Faith stopped trying to tickle her and instead pulled her close, keeping her arms tight around her. "Can't have that. We haven't even celebrated your graduation yet."

Buffy raised an eyebrow. "There's more than just the party?"

"You probably don't wanna have an audience for how we'll celebrate," Faith commented, a smirk on her face. "There's a reason I have the next couple days off."

"I thought you were doing that 'cause we were going to look for a new apartment."

"Not really and we don't even need to do that anymore."

Buffy grinned at that and kissed Faith lightly. They both had good luck on the job front the last couple months, Faith getting a promotion and Buffy securing at job at the hospital that she would start in two weeks, so they were planning on looking for a bigger apartment. Until last night and Giles' present for both of them.

Now that Giles lived with Joyce his condo was empty and he had yet to put it up for sale. Last night when she was opening presents he handed her a small carefully wrapped box with the keys inside. He said they deserved to have a nice place of their own and he had one available.

"I think we can spare a couple days to have some crazy sex," Faith said, waggling her eyebrows. "Besides, we need to start packing and shop for some furniture. We have to get rid of some of Giles' outdated crap."

"Sounds like a plan."

"Damn right it is. Well, mostly the sex part."

Letting out a little sigh, Buffy snuggled into Faith's curves and absently moved a hand over her stomach. "I wish we could get away for a few days before I start my job. Who knows when we'll get away after that?"

"What if we could get away?"

Buffy moved away enough to fully look at Faith's grinning face. "Are we going somewhere?"

"I was thinking we could go to Vegas for a couple days," Faith said casually with a shrug. "You know, if you want."

"Of course, I want!" Bully exclaimed as she practically jumped on Faith, peppering her face with kisses.

Faith laughed as she wrapped her arms around her. "Good 'cause we leave after breakfast."

Buffy gave her another kiss before looking into her eyes and smiled. "I love you."

"I'll always love you, Buffy," Faith responded, looking deep into her eyes. "And I'll never stop."

The End


End file.
